Family of 5

[MickeyinBoston]

Hi,
Would like to get folks opinions on where the family of 5 stays when going to Disney. I am having a tough time deciding between renting 2 cheaper rooms at the AS resorts or paying for a JR suite or something which costs for at the Coronado Springs.

Any advice? I already have airfare for May but I can't decide on what is more convenient for the little ones (6,5,3)
thanks,

 

[laughinplace199]

Another option might be renting points from a DVC member. The 1BR and 2 BR DVC units have full kitchens and washers/dryers too. They're great for families.

 

[nuzmom]

I agree with the previous poster, you might want to check into renting points. But, you might also want to consider Port Orleans Riverside - they have trundle beds in some rooms (alligator bayoo, I think), just mention 5 people when you reserve. Prior to becoming DVC members, we loved staying at Ft. Wilderness cabins. There's 1 seperate bedroom (a double bed and bunk beds), seperate bath, seperate kitchen, and there's a pull down double bed in the family room. Worked out great for our 5. Definitely check all options prior to booking 2 rooms at AS.

 

[Tink561]

We enjoy staying at the Polynesian and Contemporary with our family of 5. Now that we have a baby added into the mix we plan to stay at the Poly again this year.

 

[tink_lover]

We could not make up our mind as to whether or not we wanted to stay at ASMu family suites or a hotel room with daybed. Sat with both ressies for awhile while we went thru the +/- or both. Our kids are 4,5 and 7. In the end, the convenience of the Contemporary won out. I think when the kids are older, ASMu would be a great option for us, but knowing my kids- they crash when tired and I just could not imagine waiting for the bus. Just my opinion. Good luck in making a choice!

 

[Momof-3]

We are a family of 5. My kids are 14, 13 and 8 and we are giving POR a try in May. I am hoping that it will not be too cramped. We wanted to stay on Disney property this time.

We have stayed at the Dolphin....and that was pretty nice. We brought an air mattress....and that worked out perfect. We are the kind of family that takes a break or two from the parks everyday.

I have heard the rooms are pretty tight....but its cheaper than 2 rooms at a Value. After all.....it wouldn't be a vacation if the kids weren't fighting anyways....right??

 

[Mouse House Mama]

We are a fanily of 5 soon to be 6! We LOVE the Poly!!! The rooms are nice size and very roomy. It is a great resort. On the other hand we can't wait to go back to the FW Cabins. The cabin was so nice!!! Having 2 televisions alone was worth it! All my kids want to watch in WDW is "Stacey and the 7 must see attractions at WDW"!!! They watch it over and over and over and over..... We also liked having a kitchen so we could have a nice breakfast in the room as well as snacks at night and sometimes lunch or dinner. The transportation wasn't bad either.

 

[Tink561]

We are a fanily of 5 soon to be 6! We LOVE the Poly!!! The rooms are nice size and very roomy. It is a great resort. On the other hand we can't wait to go back to the FW Cabins. The cabin was so nice!!! Having 2 televisions alone was worth it! All my kids want to watch in WDW is "Stacey and the 7 must see attractions at WDW"!!! They watch it over and over and over and over..... We also liked having a kitchen so we could have a nice breakfast in the room as well as snacks at night and sometimes lunch or dinner. The transportation wasn't bad either.

Mouse House Mama,
Congrats on becoming a family of 6! Our 4th was by adoption but it was amazing to go from a party of 5 to a half dozen!

I noticed from your signature line that you stayed at the Pop after the Poly. How was that? With all of the adoption expenses and travel to China this past November we're hoping to go back to the Poly but if that doesn't work out...we may book two rooms at the Pop.

Was it a let down?

 

[nuzmom]

We are a fanily of 5 soon to be 6! The cabin was so nice!!! Having 2 televisions alone was worth it! ... We also liked having a kitchen so we could have a nice breakfast in the room as well as snacks at night and sometimes lunch or dinner.

I sooo agree. With little ones, it's so nice to have some room to "stretch out" and we used the family room floor as play space in the evenings. However, we REALLY liked having a kitchen (that's probably what got us into DVC eventually) - pick up some milk and cereal (or eggs and bread for toast) and some evening snacks and you're all set. We also took advantage of the kitchen for 1 meal per day (either lunch or dinner). We enjoyed having a break from the hecticness of WDW meals all the time. I thought the transportation was reasonable and magic kingdom is VERY easy/quick to get to.
Oh, we also enjoyed the more "relaxed" atmosphere of the cabins. You can actually take a walk and feel pretty "alone". For us, that's a nice break after the parks.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

We loved the Pop!!! We had so much fun there! The rooms are smaller, but the it wasn't that bad. We even got really sick and had to stay a few more days with alot of time in the room. There isn't really run around room in the rooms but they are set up very effeiciently. We did not use a pack and play but you could manage with one. We just all piled into the beds. We also only had one room so we were at the max. We would definetly stay there again. We loved the pools and the Goofy fountains were our favorite! Keep in mind though if you can get an AP discount like we did it was juat as cheap to rent a cabin as it would have been to rent 2 rooms at a value and cheaper than renting 2 rooms at a Mod. Congrats on your newest arrival! It is so exciting to bring a new baby into the house!

 

[Tink561]

We loved the Pop!!! We had so much fun there! The rooms are smaller, but the it wasn't that bad. We even got really sick and had to stay a few more days with alot of time in the room. There isn't really run around room in the rooms but they are set up very effeiciently. We did not use a pack and play but you could manage with one. We just all piled into the beds. We also only had one room so we were at the max. We would definetly stay there again. We loved the pools and the Goofy fountains were our favorite! Keep in mind though if you can get an AP discount like we did it was juat as cheap to rent a cabin as it would have been to rent 2 rooms at a value and cheaper than renting 2 rooms at a Mod. Congrats on your newest arrival! It is so exciting to bring a new baby into the house!

Thanks for your reply. We are FL residents and will have annual passes...or at least seasonal. I was just thinking if we don't stay at the Poly than maybe having two rooms would be a good thing. The boys could each have a bed to themselves and we'll take our pack n play for the baby. It would give us more room. What are the goofy fountains? Are they the interactive fountains? Do the pools have slides or anything to interest teen boys?

 

[northriver]

We are staying at the Poly with 5, 3 adults, one teen and a toddler. I am requesting one of the newer buildings, the rooms are larger.

I've always wanted to stay in a cabin, but am traveling with my parents who insist on a queen size bed, lol! Plus with grandparents and the baby going back to the room to rest, you can't beat the Poly for location.

 

[Mermaid4me]

Thanks for your reply. We are FL residents and will have annual passes...or at least seasonal. I was just thinking if we don't stay at the Poly than maybe having two rooms would be a good thing. The boys could each have a bed to themselves and we'll take our pack n play for the baby. It would give us more room. What are the goofy fountains? Are they the interactive fountains? Do the pools have slides or anything to interest teen boys?

We too have done the CR in 05 and the POLY last year. While we LOVE the convience of both resorts, we are trying two connecting rooms at POP. We are actually looking forward to having 2 rooms and having a little more space. DH and I love to watch TV to wind down at night and the last few years it was hard with 3 DS sleeping right there. I think in the long room we will be happier with a little more room. GOOD LUCK and have a super trip. 80 days until we check into POP!!!!

Mermaid4me

POP May 07
POLY 06
CR 05
ASMO 01
Offsite 86
CR 79

 

[armomof3lvsdisney]

We are a family of 5 and we always stay @ POR and we love it there Some of there rooms have a trundle bed, which will accomodate 5. POR is a beautiful reasort. The boat to DTD is a wonderful perk. Good luck with your planning, you can't go wrong, your going to Disney

 

[Steph9072]

We are a family of 5 and we are staying at a family suite @ All Star Music.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Thanks for your reply. We are FL residents and will have annual passes...or at least seasonal. I was just thinking if we don't stay at the Poly than maybe having two rooms would be a good thing. The boys could each have a bed to themselves and we'll take our pack n play for the baby. It would give us more room. What are the goofy fountains? Are they the interactive fountains? Do the pools have slides or anything to interest teen boys?

The Goofy fountains are interactive fountains with water shotting up out of the ground. They are on very soft material not cement. We had so much fun at them! There are no slide but the Hippy Dippy Pool has flower sprays that spray into the pool. There are so many themed pools to chose from there that it was just fun trying a different pool each time! There were alot of young teens there and they seemes to love it. THe food court was also great. It had alot of selections and we always found something that we likes. They also have a really nice gift shop. Truthfully, the food court and gift shop are better than the deluxes. I wouldn't hesititate to stay there again except we might wait until they are a little older since we still have alot of strollers to fold up for the bus. You will love it!