First "Relaxing at the Resort' Trip

[ADAMANDLISA]

So, after a really bad month here where everything seemed to go wrong, I decided we needed a week away just to relax and let the boys do some swimming. After pricing a couple of different ideas...Disney ended up being our cheapest option, of course! Gotta love DVC!!!

As we usually go commando-style in low-crowd time periods, I know June crowds will be overwhelming to me....which is a good thing, because I really want to use this opportunity to take advantage of the resort and the pool...and we all know how relaxing Old Key West is.

For those of you who have done this type of trip or want to....do you have any suggestions or tips?

Thank you so much!

 

[Mahusky]

So, after a really bad month here where everything seemed to go wrong, I decided we needed a week away just to relax and let the boys do some swimming. After pricing a couple of different ideas...Disney ended up being our cheapest option, of course! Gotta love DVC!!!

As we usually go commando-style in low-crowd time periods, I know June crowds will be overwhelming to me....which is a good thing, because I really want to use this opportunity to take advantage of the resort and the pool...and we all know how relaxing Old Key West is.

For those of you who have done this type of trip or want to....do you have any suggestions or tips?

Thank you so much!

Enjoy the time off I can't wait for our escape.

Do the little things that you wouldn't normally do. If we need some down time we take a casula stroll around world show case trying to visit evry possible spot in each of the countries.

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

Take Disney transportation over to the poly to watch Wishes - since you want a resort only trip

 

[MARY-IN-OH]

Mini golf at Fantasia Gardens (Swan & Dolphin boardwalk area) - Note there is a DVC discount for this, and then walk over to the Boardwalk resort for a swim (awesome slide!). If you don't have a car, catch the boat ride to Studios to catch the bus back to your resort, or walk to the studios.

Very relaxing & fun day. And the boardwalk area is so pretty.

You can relax on the beach at the BCV too. They also have movies at night on the beach.

We did that one day on our week with only 1 park day. We were staying at SSR for my birthday week.

Resort hopping is fun, you can do so much at disney even without going to any of the theme parks!
-mary

 

[Girlie1]

Not sure how old your boys are, but if you want a little adult only time, you could go to Grand Floridian and let the boys go on the Pirate Cruise. My boys were 9 and 5 last time they went on the Pirate Cruise and they had a blast.

 

[3DisneyKids]

We love doing resort trips. Our kids are a bit older, but it might work for you--we take advantage of the DVC perk to pool hop! Our kids are water bugs and crazy about slides. So we go to a bunch of the resorts throughout the week and they have an elaborate rating system for the pools and slides. And of course, my husband and I sample the drink specials at each resort pool bar.

And yes, see Wishes from the Poly. Or Fort Wilderness. Or, go to Trails End at Fort Wilderness, get their chicken-in-a-bucket thing to go and have a picnic on the beach over there. (FYI--cheapest meal on Disney property. I am a vegetarian, so I can't comment on the quality, but we know lots of folks who have done this and they all rave about it.)

Don't forget to use the Community Hall wherever you end up staying. They have all sorts of programs for the kids--some totally free and some for a very nominal fee ($3 per child or something). And use the games and DVDs, get tennis rackets and play on the courts (again, available at the Community Hall free of charge).

Eat at restaurants you wouldn't normally go to. Some resort restaurants are great, but we never get there because we are focused on the parks and our own resort so everything else seems out of the way. Well, now you have time for all of the out of the way stuff!

Hope this helps. Have fun!

 

[purpliequeen]

All the suggestions mentioned thus far are great. We definitely appreciate restaurants with a view of Wishes when we're not visiting the parks- California Grill, Narcoosee's, to name a few.

We also try to do more activities at the resort. AKL was great because of all the activities that they have going on- learning about Africa, story telling, etc. All good things. I'm sure OKW has a great line up of activities as well.

I'd also recommend mini golfing, catching a movie down in DTD, shopping in DTD, etc. Have fun!

 

[BEASLYBOO]

We go in early June every year, the 1st Monday after school lets out! still stay away from the theme parks. We love the waterparks, TL is our favorite. Our boys (13) love to fish so we head over to Ft. Wilderness a couple of times during the week. We also love to go to the movies and it's so covenient from OKW/SSR to DTD. We bring movies, order Giordano's pizza and also play board games. Hang out by the pool, take the boat to DTD and go for ice cream at Girardeli's. We drive in so I also take in a little shopping at the outlet mall, it's my vacation too, I sometimes have to remind the kids that it's not just all about them! Same with spa time at SSR, everybody gets to do a little of what they want. It's just about having quality downtime with our family and friends. The theme parks can wait till we go back in Oct/Nov when it's not so hot!

 

[Simba's Mom]

We've also thought of this, also at OKW, and although I have no advice, I do have a question. If you go at a time when the theme parks are especially busy (say, a holiday weekend), does OKW (or other resorts we might visit) seem overly busy? With weekend points going down so much next year, we're considering a long weekend there just to relax at OKW.

 

[dbs1228]

Just returned from my 1st dvc trip with 2 girlfriends and we stayed at OKW, it is the perfect place to kick back and relax. We had a car and did a lot of parks since neither one of my friends has been in many years but I cannot wait to stay there again when we plan a "no park visit". While at the pool I felt like I was in the caribbean, and all the kids were having fun, toddlers to teens.

 

[goofydad99]

We go in early June every year, the 1st Monday after school lets out! still stay away from the theme parks. We love the waterparks, TL is our favorite. Our boys (13) love to fish so we head over to Ft. Wilderness a couple of times during the week. We also love to go to the movies and it's so covenient from OKW/SSR to DTD. We bring movies, order Giordano's pizza and also play board games. Hang out by the pool, take the boat to DTD and go for ice cream at Girardeli's. We drive in so I also take in a little shopping at the outlet mall, it's my vacation too, I sometimes have to remind the kids that it's not just all about them! Same with spa time at SSR, everybody gets to do a little of what they want. It's just about having quality downtime with our family and friends. The theme parks can wait till we go back in Oct/Nov when it's not so hot!

Our trips are overlapping this year. You know we were trying to find a more affordable family vacation and we found that OKW was the most affordable. We just might see you at the pool.

 

[ADAMANDLISA]

Enjoy the time off I can't wait for our escape.

Do the little things that you wouldn't normally do. If we need some down time we take a casula stroll around world show case trying to visit evry possible spot in each of the countries.

That's a great idea! We love visiting the countries, but never seem to have enough time for everything!!!

Take Disney transportation over to the poly to watch Wishes - since you want a resort only trip

I can't tell you how long it's been since we've seen Wishes...with the boys being so young, they were always in bed relatively early and I haven't seen it forever. To see it from the beach would be amazing! Thank you for the idea! We're going to go to the parks a couple of times, but only for a short time and definitely not every day. (I really hope I can do it!)

Mini golf at Fantasia Gardens (Swan & Dolphin boardwalk area) - Note there is a DVC discount for this, and then walk over to the Boardwalk resort for a swim (awesome slide!). If you don't have a car, catch the boat ride to Studios to catch the bus back to your resort, or walk to the studios.

Very relaxing & fun day. And the boardwalk area is so pretty.

You can relax on the beach at the BCV too. They also have movies at night on the beach.

We did that one day on our week with only 1 park day. We were staying at SSR for my birthday week.

Resort hopping is fun, you can do so much at disney even without going to any of the theme parks!
-mary

Mini golf is a great idea! I just mentioned it to DH and he is on board. We always forget about it because we're so focused on the parks!

Not sure how old your boys are, but if you want a little adult only time, you could go to Grand Floridian and let the boys go on the Pirate Cruise. My boys were 9 and 5 last time they went on the Pirate Cruise and they had a blast.

My boys are only 4, 3 and 1. We'll definitely try that next year when both of my older 2 can go! Adult only time would be wonderful!

We love doing resort trips. Our kids are a bit older, but it might work for you--we take advantage of the DVC perk to pool hop! Our kids are water bugs and crazy about slides. So we go to a bunch of the resorts throughout the week and they have an elaborate rating system for the pools and slides. And of course, my husband and I sample the drink specials at each resort pool bar.

And yes, see Wishes from the Poly. Or Fort Wilderness. Or, go to Trails End at Fort Wilderness, get their chicken-in-a-bucket thing to go and have a picnic on the beach over there. (FYI--cheapest meal on Disney property. I am a vegetarian, so I can't comment on the quality, but we know lots of folks who have done this and they all rave about it.)

Don't forget to use the Community Hall wherever you end up staying. They have all sorts of programs for the kids--some totally free and some for a very nominal fee ($3 per child or something). And use the games and DVDs, get tennis rackets and play on the courts (again, available at the Community Hall free of charge).

Eat at restaurants you wouldn't normally go to. Some resort restaurants are great, but we never get there because we are focused on the parks and our own resort so everything else seems out of the way. Well, now you have time for all of the out of the way stuff!

Hope this helps. Have fun!

I forgot all about pool hopping! Excellent idea..especially if the pool at OKW is too congested one day!

All the suggestions mentioned thus far are great. We definitely appreciate restaurants with a view of Wishes when we're not visiting the parks- California Grill, Narcoosee's, to name a few.

We also try to do more activities at the resort. AKL was great because of all the activities that they have going on- learning about Africa, story telling, etc. All good things. I'm sure OKW has a great line up of activities as well.

I'd also recommend mini golfing, catching a movie down in DTD, shopping in DTD, etc. Have fun!

We'll definitely have to head over to AKV...even when we've stayed there, we never seemed to have time for all of the activities. I love that resort!!!

We go in early June every year, the 1st Monday after school lets out! still stay away from the theme parks. We love the waterparks, TL is our favorite. Our boys (13) love to fish so we head over to Ft. Wilderness a couple of times during the week. We also love to go to the movies and it's so covenient from OKW/SSR to DTD. We bring movies, order Giordano's pizza and also play board games. Hang out by the pool, take the boat to DTD and go for ice cream at Girardeli's. We drive in so I also take in a little shopping at the outlet mall, it's my vacation too, I sometimes have to remind the kids that it's not just all about them! Same with spa time at SSR, everybody gets to do a little of what they want. It's just about having quality downtime with our family and friends. The theme parks can wait till we go back in Oct/Nov when it's not so hot!

That sounds like a great time! We'll be driving in also and I'm dying to check out the outlet mall! I never thought I would get to the point where I would want to go without being at the parks all day, every day! I love how DVC allows us to come more often so that you are never worried about missing something!!!

We've also thought of this, also at OKW, and although I have no advice, I do have a question. If you go at a time when the theme parks are especially busy (say, a holiday weekend), does OKW (or other resorts we might visit) seem overly busy? With weekend points going down so much next year, we're considering a long weekend there just to relax at OKW.

That's a great question. I was wondering the same exact thing! If the parks are so busy...will the pool be overcrowded?

Just returned from my 1st dvc trip with 2 girlfriends and we stayed at OKW, it is the perfect place to kick back and relax. We had a car and did a lot of parks since neither one of my friends has been in many years but I cannot wait to stay there again when we plan a "no park visit". While at the pool I felt like I was in the caribbean, and all the kids were having fun, toddlers to teens.

When I would first look at OKW on the computer, I was positive it would be the one I liked the least.....yeah right!!! We fell in love with this resort! It's so much more relaxing than any other resort we have stayed at....and the pool is awesome. I cannot wait to get there!

Our trips are overlapping this year. You know we were trying to find a more affordable family vacation and we found that OKW was the most affordable. We just might see you at the pool.

OKW is so affordable! I love the low points and bigger rooms. I can't wait add on points here (in the future sometime...I hope!)

 

[AndriaRose]

I would look up info on extra activities at Fort Wilderness. I've read about a petting zoo, pony rides (an early daytime activity), stables, sing-alongs with Chip and Dale, marshmallow roasting, horse drawn wagon rides (evening activities). Also investigate the nightime electric water parade.

In the DTD area, check out info for the Lego store.

Wish I could help more, but I also am researching, so don't have 1st hand info for most of these. I have done the Breakfast with Lilo and Stitch at the Poly twice now (with DGD), we loved it and your little ones may as well

 

[ADAMANDLISA]

We've always wanted to do the movie and campfire with Chip and Dale. I swear, we really need to stop going so commando-style in the parks!


Our last trip in Feb, we got so lucky at VWL and had a villa that overlooked the lake, so we got to see the Electric Light Parade every night from our balcony. It was a very nice perk, especially considering we were all horribly sick with the stomach flu!

We love O'hana breakfast too! It's one of my favorites!!! This trip we are bringing all our food and cooking in the villa to save money, since we weren't planning on going...but how can you beat just paying gas and food for the week?

 

[RCharnay]

We love to relax and just hang out. REmember that movies are available for DVC members-in case you need a quiet afternoon or evening in. But who can resist the restaurants? And we also enjoy riding the transportation-the boats from OKW and also the monorail. As long as it's not high traffic time, it's fun to just get on the monorail and see the sights as you head to lunch or an early dinner at one of the resorts.

 

[JasonDVC]

We just came back from a trip like that at Kidani. It included:

• Spending an evening at the Boardwalk watching the LIVE & FREE entertainers
• Spent 2 days at the pool. There were pool activities 1 day with a DJ. It was fun!
• Visiting and dining at different resorts. Our favorite was the Grand Floridian. When, oh when, will DVC arrive at GF?
• 2 days of shopping and hanging out at DTD
• Relaxing on our balcony, watching the animals
• Playing foosball and Wii in the Community Hall

Have fun!

 

[dizfanz]

DW and I are DINKs and rarely go to the parks. Rent a boat from POLY, CR or WL. Either a pontoon for the whole family or those mini boats to cruise around in. That area has the most water to cruise on. Rent bikes at WL. I love taking the trail over to FW and ride around the campgrounds. So many places to ride over there and pretty quiet. Mini golf has been said already. How about one of the water parks. Disney Quest. Take them to La Nouba if you have never seen it. They used to let you in to Epcot through the back International Gateway area just as Illuminatios was to begin without tickets. I don't know if they still do that. Boardwalk at night. Play some of the games there. Have a nice dinner you may not have during a normal visit. Go to California Grill to eat during Wishes.

 

[MrDisneyphile]

OKW also has the outdoor movie. You can take one evening to go and see a free movie and enjoy the resort! Even when we go into the parks we make sure we have enough days to resort hop and hang out at the Boardwalk. Our next trip we are going to take our DD3 and DD1 to the petting zoo at Fort Wilderness and maybe a pony ride. I love the non-park days at the World.

 

[Greg K.]

It's actually pretty cool. I couldn't coax my wife into trying it, so I went one morning after breakfast last August. It was a perfect time -- around 10 am, I think, and there was no line, no wait, and the weather was delightful.

I was told by the "pilot" that the ride is very popular in the evenings around fireworks time, so you might want to try that, too!

 

[edk35]

How do your kids feel about NOT visiting a park?? I know it would be hard for me NOT to go to a park or two during a week's stay. Two summers ago we stayed at OKW for 8 nights and then moved to BCV for 6. We did more relaxing at OKW.....slept in, went to the pool, DTD, TL but we also did some park action but not as much as we did when we got BCV. It was so hard to not go to EC a few times. Just curious. Have fun.