First visit, where to stay at Disney? :)

[Azza1987]

Good Morning All,

I've just joined after spending all night reading through so many threads on here, WOW, this site is absolutely briliant! I most definitely will be utilising this as much as I can

Anyway, Im taking my boyfriend to Disney next year as a Surprise for his 30th Birthday . We are spending 4 nights in New York first staying with a friend, and then fying down to Orlando Int. on Wed 1st of May, staying 7 nights.

Our flights are booked, now just to choose my resort to stay in! I have spent hours trawlling through trip advisor, the WD website, photo's, reviews etc and I still am non the wiser on where to choose

My budget is £1500-£1600 to cover accommodation and park tickets (if i book before Novmeber I get a free dining plan at certain resorts when booking tickets, so if its worth doing I may do this?)

Here are the choices I've (sort of) limited it too and still have no hope in choosing!

Coronado Springs Resort (King room, this comes with free quick service plan)
Port Orleans French Quater (Water view, also free quick sevice)
Port Orleans Riverside (Garden view,also free quick service)
Old Key west resort (Studio villa, comes with normal dining free)
Saratoga Springs resort (studio villa, comes with normal dining free)

All of these come somewhere between £1300 - £1600 when I add park tickets for both of us for 7 nights.

So can anyone gives me any help/advice etc?

A bit about us, Im 25 (will be 26 at departure) Boyfriend will be 30, we both enjoy nice food, and will want to have a few alcholic beverages maybe every other night. As it our first time we really want to do all the parks, especially animal kingdom (we are big on animals!). We would like to spend at least one day relaxing by a nice pool enjoying some sunv(if weather permits).

We wont be hiring a car instead using the magical express, and disney transport.

We both like sitting on a balcony/terrace watching the world go by with breakfast or a glass or wine of an evening.

We are huge big kids at heart, and I am a huge disney fan!

We dont have any particular taste's specific food wise, but we do like to stay somewhere clean, with space to unpack, and a nice bathroom!

Any hep will be massively appreciated

I dont want to go over board on spends whilst Im out there, Ive saved all year for this trip, and will be taking about $2000 to cover New York and Disney (we dont get any free food in New york!) etc, so the dining plan would be a big help to us. I dont eat alot (bit of a diet/health freak) but boyfriend eats everything he's given!

Thank you in advance x

 

[HairyChest]

I think you get regular dining free not quick service dining with moderates.

Anyways after countless hours of research id choose port orleans riverside. Beautiful mansions, royal rooms, boat to downtown disney.

I love haunted mansion at disneyland, coulumbia riverboat, and princess frog so the themeing here hits home with me

 

[Azza1987]

Thanks! Port Orleans was definitely up there with one of my favourites! It does only come with the quick service plan though, at the minute all the moderate resorts are 'quick service free' and the deluxe/villas are 'normal dining' free! It's free though, and if that covers breakfast/lunch I dont mind paying for a sit down dinner elsewhere x

 

[FBDM66]

You've made some great selections - each of those resorts are great. I've stayed at each of them over the years. If you're looking for a balcony or patio you'll find them in OKW and SSR. Those are my personal favorites. You'll find nicest lounge at POR, many here comment on it and the entertainment they have. SSR's lounge is very nice, lot's of couches, a pool table, adjoining a GREAT restaurant - Turf Club - best prime rib on property IMO.

Have fun deciding!

 

[MrsBianca]

We stayed at port Orleans riverside for our honeymoon a good few years ago. We loved it and it felt IMO just right for adults without kids, although there were loads of children there and I now would be happy to go back there with my son. It had a real quiet and relaxed vibe about it, we chose to stay away from the main pool ad stick to the quiet one just beside us.

That trip we hardly did a table service meal as we were so busy rushing round trying to do everything!! So you maybe ok with the quick service.

Next year our first trip with our son we have regular dining as we will be taking it a bit easier with him and would like to do some character dining as well as t-Rex cafe.

Sure you will have a fab time wherever you chose. X

 

[Kimberle]

Welcome to the Dis!

Of your choices, I would choose POR. If you can, I'd choose a preferred room. They are slightly more expensive than the garden views (maybe a couple hundred dollars for the week.) The preferred rooms are the closest ones to the main building. POR also has a nice food court with lots of choices. POR also has a charming boat ride to DTD.

 

[Azza1987]

Hi,

Thanks very much for your responses!

I think Port Orleans looks a good choice, I can choose to upgrade to 'regular' dining for £210.00 for both of us, do you think this would be worth while?

How can I choose a preferred room, on the WD website it is giving me 2 options for POR - Garden View or King Room and for FQ standard view, garden or river view! Do i not have the option of a preferred room at the avaliable times?

Many thanks again

 

[jamescanuck2001]

i would upgrade to regular dining

there are excellent table service choices a boat ride away in downtown disney, raglan road for example

i agree that POR is a good choice for a first visit.... the only downside i see is there are a lot of families with young kids

if as a couple you prefer a more 'adult' resort, i would suggest wilderness lodge although it is a bit pricier

also, if you book now keep an eye on the discounts that come up.... if a new better discount comes up you can apply to your package at no charge

 

[jimandami]

All of those resorts are good choices! Just keep in mind if you really want a balcony, you will only get one at SSR or OKW, not the moderates.

 

[Sue M]

I think you get different discounts there then the North American market. Here you get the regular DDP with moderate resorts. IMO the free quick service isn't worth it, so if there is a room discount option that would be better. Or upgrade to regular DDP. When on DDP, it is a waste of credit to use it for breakfast and lunch paying oop for dinner. I'd use your dining credits for lunch and dinner, and pay oop for breakfast.

If there is a choice of room discount or free dining, I'd do the Disney math, and price out packages both ways,
#1 pkg free dining
Vs
#2 pkg of room discount and paying for DDP.

One will be better then the other. We are 2 and depending on discounts when we book moderate, free dining may be the best discount, but when we book a deluxe resort, the room discount and purchasing DDP is always cheaper.

POR is our fav moderate resort. We love the mansion section. Either Magnolia Terrace or Acadian House are our fav locations. They are a short walk to main pool and main buildings without having to pay preferred. The Preferred rooms are in Aligator Bayou section, which I don't care for. Not a fan of the twig rustic furniture

POR has just a bit more to offer with a boat to DTD. Horse & carriage rides, evening entertainment in the lounge, and the resort landscaping is beautiful. Also they have quiet pool in addition to the main pool.
The resort is centrally located too.

The only thing missing would be balconies. None of the moderate resorts have them. You'd have to go to OKW or SSR to get a balcony. The only problem with these resorts, are they are massive, and you may end up having to take the internal shuttle to get to the park bus. All ears.net has lots of resort info, incl resort maps in the accommodation section.

To make a location request for your chosen resort (ie: magnolia terrace building at POR) you would just request that when you book. Or if you are using a TA, get them To add your room request to your reservation.

Good luck and happy planning!

 

[twinboysmom]

I would choose SSR. Yes, it's large and spread out but it's easy to get around and there is an internal shuttle. With just the two of you, you would have a room with a bed and a couch which is nice and makes it feel very roomy. Before we had kids I loved staying in DVC studios when it was just us. I would request the congress park section and ask for a downtown Disney view (only a request of course). It's beautiful and we loved sitting on the balcony overlooking the water. SSR has 2 themed pools and one semi themed quiet pool and other quiet pools. The quiet pool in the congress park section is overlooking the water and hardly ever busy. Also it is very easy to walk to DTD from SSR, particularly the congres park section.

As stated before, the only rooms with balconies from your list are SSR or OKW.m for a moderate resort, we like CSR. To us, it had as lightly more adult feel. The grounds are gorgeous and relaxing and in our opinion, we loved the food options here.

 

[MrsBianca]

If you are booking with Disney through the uk site, there is nowhere to put a room preference but just phone them when you have done your booking.

As far as upgrading the dining....have a look at the menus and try to work out if you would spend that on top of the quick service. As I said the last time we were there just as two adults we only had a couple of table service meals but this time we have the normal ddp included and it is nice to plan all the different places we fancy eating.

It was magnolia terrace we stayed in POR and it was lovely.

It's so hard to chose because everywhere looks good. x

 

[ExpatDisneyLover]

hmmmmm- just a few thoughts-

Since you like nice meals I would either upgrade to the regular dining - or even deluxe dining if it is at all affordable if you want to do a few signature meals. I do think signature meals are good options.

SSR or OKW would give you a balcony, and boat access to DTD. SSR can be in walking distance to DTD if you choose the Congress Park section. OKW is a laid back, Key West kind of feel to it and SSR spacious, with a spa resort feel. Both are large and would mean internal buses.

POR and POFQ also have boat transportation to DTD. POFQ being the smaller of the two.

Of the moderates I think CSR has the most adult feel to it - and the quick service dining would be a good option there as you can have a buffet breakfast and/or lunch at their CS on the quick service plan which is IMO one of the best uses of the quick service credits at WDW.

So that probably didn't help at all - LOL -
I think I might consider OKW/SSR and upgrade to Deluxe Dining if you can and then do some signature meals - or stay with regular dining and plan some good table service options.

My second option would be CSR for two adults - with the quick service plan - to have a buffet breakfast in the mornings/or lunch.

 

[MMS1125]

I think you get regular dining free not quick service dining with moderates.

UK free dining is qsdp with mod and regular with deluxe. Nothing for value


If you want a balcony I'd go with OKW or SSR. If it's not a deal breaker for you I'd go with CSR or POR. I'm kinda leaning more towards CSR since you can book a king room and upgrade dining. If you like nice restaurants I'd def upgrade the dining if you don't go with a deluxe.

 

[Azza1987]

Thanks so much for your replies guys

I think I'll look to book SSR and requeset Congress Park if possible, I'd like a quiet pool (nothing against children, but I do love swimming and being able to swim from one end to the other sounds like a good deal to me!). Being able to walk to downtown Disney also sounds like a bit of a plus point, we do enjoy some nice bars etc.

However, I am holding off for a week booking, I have a second interview tomorrow for a much better job (and it comes with a significant pay rise!) So if all goes well (fingers and toes crossed) I might have a slighter bigger budget for another resort, such as Wilderness Lodge or Beach Club. Both I believe have balconies but are just out of my current budget at the minute! (they work about £600 more expensive with park tickets included ((ouch!!)).

So currently SSR is my choice, with the normal dining plan. I don't eat alot but OH does so he will probably use most of my credits which I dont mind. I just like eating crisps which I can buy from a supermarket (honestly my diet is so useless, it consists of yoghurts, eggs, crisps and cottage pie mostly!).

But the deluxe dining plan could also be an option, It would mean all our food is literally covered for the entire week! I would love do some signiture dining! But I just don't know if we would use all of it up? I suppose we could save our snack credits and use them to buy everyone sweets from the stores (can you do that?)

Thanks again, Honestly I am useless at making decisions (as an auditor you wouldn't think that would you!).

 

[ExpatDisneyLover]

Thanks so much for your replies guys

I think I'll look to book SSR and requeset Congress Park if possible, I'd like a quiet pool (nothing against children, but I do love swimming and being able to swim from one end to the other sounds like a good deal to me!). Being able to walk to downtown Disney also sounds like a bit of a plus point, we do enjoy some nice bars etc.

However, I am holding off for a week booking, I have a second interview tomorrow for a much better job (and it comes with a significant pay rise!) So if all goes well (fingers and toes crossed) I might have a slighter bigger budget for another resort, such as Wilderness Lodge or Beach Club. Both I believe have balconies but are just out of my current budget at the minute! (they work about £600 more expensive with park tickets included ((ouch!!)).

So currently SSR is my choice, with the normal dining plan. I don't eat alot but OH does so he will probably use most of my credits which I dont mind. I just like eating crisps which I can buy from a supermarket (honestly my diet is so useless, it consists of yoghurts, eggs, crisps and cottage pie mostly!).

But the deluxe dining plan could also be an option, It would mean all our food is literally covered for the entire week! I would love do some signiture dining! But I just don't know if we would use all of it up? I suppose we could save our snack credits and use them to buy everyone sweets from the stores (can you do that?)

Thanks again, Honestly I am useless at making decisions (as an auditor you wouldn't think that would you!).

Most definitely you can use snack credits for sweets and crisps as well! Deluxe dining would be a lot of food but if you are doing signature meals not too much - IMO.

 

[guitarob]

Don't forget that if you book free dining, you can upgrade to regular or deluxe for just the difference in price between quick service and whatever plan you choose.

One of the things we do with the Deluxe dining plan is use 1 credit at a table service or a couple of snack credits for a later breakfast, have a snack for or skip lunch, and have a signature meal for dinner almost every night.

 

[tofubeast]

I'd book CSR. It's a great resort for adults--- largest hot tub on property, awesome pool with a long slide. There is a night club. Great bus service to the parks. The rooms also have a bit more of a deluxe feel as well.

I liked SSR, but I would go back to CSR with it being cheaper and also having nice amenities. That said, wherever you stay, you will have a nice trip!

 

[polkadotminnie]

I was going to suggest AKL (Animal Kingdom Lodge) if you are able to swing it. You said that you love animals and sitting on a balcony relaxing. There is no better place than AKL for that.

 

[MarineVet]

I'd book CSR. It's a great resort for adults--- largest hot tub on property, awesome pool with a long slide. There is a night club. Great bus service to the parks. The rooms also have a bit more of a deluxe feel as well.

I liked SSR, but I would go back to CSR with it being cheaper and also having nice amenities. That said, wherever you stay, you will have a nice trip!

I echo this, no balconies but there are nice hammocks to relax in by the lake and they will hold both of you. The pool is great and CSR does not share buses with any other resort, so it quicker and less crowded. We stayed the second week of December last year and it was quiet and very pretty.