DLH or VGC

[El&Asmom]

We are thinking about combining a conference I'll go to in June of '11 near DL with our first trip to DL parks. Problem is, a 1bd at VGC is 56 points a night. We just can't justify it. It would be nice to have the extra room and kitchen, but we plan to eat mainly at the parks since we want to try out new restaurants we have never eaten at.
So choices would be using points for a room at DLH or a studio at VGC. We are a family of 5 with our youngest being 2.5 at the time of the trip.
Is there a daybed at DLH for our 2.5 yo to use? By that time a PnP likely won't work. Is GC really that much better than DLH. It has always been my dream to stay ad GC since that is my favorite style of architecture.
So what would you choose, a studio at VGC, or a standard room at DLH? The last option is waiting to see if there are any great deals that come out and pay OOP.

 

[Duane]

We just spent a week in a 1BR at VGC, and we absolutely loved the place. We walked to the other two resorts to check them out, and not to be a DVC snob, but the DLH and PP both seemed to me like any other hotel out there that had some Disney decortations added after the fact. Now don't get me wrong, they both may be a perfectly great place to stay, but I think that once you stay someplace else and walk through VGC you will feel "shortchanged". If there is anyway you can stay at VGC you will understand.

Duane

 

[wendypooh22]

Yes, there are daybeds in the rooms at the DLH. We have never had a room without one... I haven't seen the VGC rooms, but we recently stayed in one of the remodeled rooms at the DLH and I was quite impressed with what they have done. The furnishings are very modern and the mickey/disney theme was carried out thru the entire room from the bathroom tiles to the castle headboard. Either way, you will have a great time.. You're at DL!

 

[MCSfromWA]

What are your dates for June 2011? I was just checking the point chart for 2011 and noticed that June 1-26 for a 1 bedroom is 39 points Sunday through Thursday and 48 for Friday/Saturday. After the 26th it jumps up to 52 and 64 respectively. Is your conference at the end of June?

I have stayed at DLH and GC and VGC. I will only stay at VGC now. The villas are great and the location cannot be beat. There is a private entrance to DCA at GC that is easy to access. And the space is wonderful. I think we haved walked a lot more when we stayed at DLH than when we have stayed at GC and VGC. I don't think I would stay in a studio with 3 kids, however. You would have a queen bed and a pullout in a studio. A one bedroom would give you a murphy bed in the livingroom plus a pullout as well as the master bedroom.

We stayed in a one bedroom VGC parkview on opening weekend of the villas in September. It was awesome! There are 5 of us (DH, myself, DM, and 2 children). The one bedroom was fine but when we go in June we have a 2 bedroom reserved so that we can spread out more.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[bethy]

For me, while I love the GC and am a DVC owner there, I would rather stay in a DLH room with 3 children than in a Studio at VGC with 3 children. For comparison, the studios at VGC are a bit bigger than most of the studios at WDW. But where would the third child sleep?

I guess it would also depend on how long you are staying - for a longer stay I'd want more room. The rooms at PP are good-sized, too.

Finally, you might consider some offsite options - like the Howard Johnson, which is much cheaper, very clean, has large rooms and is the same distance from the main gates as the DLH.

 

[bumbershoot]

The only DLH room I've been in (as an adult, at least) did *not* have the daybed. Then again, we are only a family of 3.

I, personally, would go with PPH and its bigger rooms with a proper fold-down bed (it's not your typical sofabed) that's in all the rooms and its bright cheery fun. But that's not one of your options.

 

[boiseflyfisher]

I, personally, would go with PPH and its bigger rooms with a proper fold-down bed (it's not your typical sofabed) that's in all the rooms and its bright cheery fun. But that's not one of your options.

I'm with Molly, if you aren't going to go with the 1br villa and you are wanting to use points, stay at PP. The rooms are larger and if you go out the front door, cross the street and enter the front of the Grand, it isn't much farther. I think a studio would be way too small for a family of 5.

 

[sierranevada]

I love the VGC but a studio would be cramped with 5 people so I would recommend the DLH. If you are a family of 5, you should automatically get a room with 2 queens and a sofa bed - they are also about 50 sq ft larger than the regular rooms. By next June, 2 of the DLH towers should be completely renovated (just a guess based on progress so far) so you chances would be high for a new room - and they are really nice looking! And since it is your first DLR visit, especially with kids, I think the DLH would be the best. I think it is magical, especially for kids. There is something about pulling up to the hotel with the topiary Mickey greeting you, Disney music playing in the check in lobby, the Neverland themed pool with a projection of Tink at night, the disney decor in the room, Tinkerbell dust on the wallpaper border that glows at night (leave curtains open during day and lights on for all while to charge the dust), Mickey wake up calls - make sure the kids answer, Characters in the lobby (occasionally), walking through DTD on the way to the park or taking the monorail. It always makes me feel like I never leave the park. You can call ahead of time and ask for autograph photos of the kids's favorite character to be ready for them when you check in. You also get Magic Mornings every day it is offered if you are a DLR hotel guest. I think you and your kids will have a great time! When my son was younger, he preferred the DLH. Of course, now as a teenager, he prefers the GCH (or VGC).

 

[bumbershoot]

FYI, we've gotten Mickey as the voice on the wakeup call at all 3 resorts. DS is always totally asleep when he answers, and he still cannot tell us what on earth Mickey says to him, but it sure does brighten his morning!

 

[heatherleigh]

My vote is the DLH. I've never stayed there, but we will probably do that in Nov. I am still undecided between DLH and the GCH...

 

[El&Asmom]

What are your dates for June 2011? I was just checking the point chart for 2011 and noticed that June 1-26 for a 1 bedroom is 39 points Sunday through Thursday and 48 for Friday/Saturday. After the 26th it jumps up to 52 and 64 respectively. Is your conference at the end of June?

I have stayed at DLH and GC and VGC. I will only stay at VGC now. The villas are great and the location cannot be beat. There is a private entrance to DCA at GC that is easy to access. And the space is wonderful. I think we haved walked a lot more when we stayed at DLH than when we have stayed at GC and VGC. I don't think I would stay in a studio with 3 kids, however. You would have a queen bed and a pullout in a studio. A one bedroom would give you a murphy bed in the livingroom plus a pullout as well as the master bedroom.

We stayed in a one bedroom VGC parkview on opening weekend of the villas in September. It was awesome! There are 5 of us (DH, myself, DM, and 2 children). The one bedroom was fine but when we go in June we have a 2 bedroom reserved so that we can spread out more.

Good luck with your decision.

Unfortunately the conference starts on the 29th and goes until July 3rd. Our plan was to stay at the GCH starting on Sunday the 26th for three nights, and then move to the conference hotel on Wednesday.
I'm starting to think we should just suck it up and use the points on a 1bd. DL is more of a once or twice in a lifetime trip for us, so we mine as well enjoy our stay there. I agree, a studio would be tight for our family even with one under the age of 3. We may still look into DLH since there is a daybed there, and the points are half of what a 1bd would be. I'll have to play with our points a little bit and decide what's the best use of them.

Thanks for all the input. It's a nice problem to have to solve. Any other opinions would be great.

 

[RweTHEREyet]

We stayed at the DLH last weekend and did not have a day bed in our room.
we were in the tower where you check in and our room overlooked the pool area. I would also like to mention that we did not get our wake up call the morning we were flying out. The rooms was very nicely themed, but do definitely need to be upgraded. The shower head in the bathroom hit me at chest level, and I am only 5' 4", can you imagine what it was like for my 6' 2" hubby.