Fort Wilderness Cabins or POP?

[hellooothere]

Hi
What do you guys think? We are a family of 6, me and DH, DD12,DS10 and DDTwins 3(will be turning 4 December 7th while we are at Disney).
We will check in after 5pm on Dec.6 and check out on Dec.8 before we head to the coast for the rest of our holiday. Do you think we will get enough use out of the kitchen etc. to warrant spending the extra $40 bucks a night (difference between the price of 2 rooms at the Pop at $55 a night) at the cabins? Or do you think we should stick with the POP and get a fridge for one of the rooms and enjoy having 2 bathrooms.
I like the idea of arriving at Fort Wilderness and enjoying the Electric Water Parade or the Sing A Long but POP's pools look like alot of fun for the kids.

Anybody have an opinion on this one?

Thanks
Kathy

 

[Scratch42]

Personally, for such a short stay, I would pick the POP!

It is a fun resort!

But then again, if you are planning on staying around FW, and not do the parks commando, then pick the cabins! There is a lot to do at FW without even going into the parks from dawn to dusk!

I guess I did not help much!

Both are good choices!

Scratch

 

[mousy_in_canada]

Personally. I would (am ) stay in the cabins.
The chance for the kids to get out and play is such a draw for me, and also a chance to save some money on the food is a great benefit.
The price with an AP is 136 a night for when I am going. that is not a bad price and to me well worth it!

 

[phabric]

We stayed at the cabins in 1999 with 5 adults. The bedroom had a double bed and bunk beds and the livingroom had a pull down from the wall double bed. The kitchen area had a full size refrig, dishwasher, stove and table with 4 chairs. The livingroom had a TV, chair, loveseat, and a sofa.

We had our breakfast each morning in the cabin and used the refrig for drinks and snacks.

What I like about them, you had maid service just like the other resorts and you were away from the other cabins( we never saw or heard the people from the other cabins).

Sometimes the buses were slow or we had just missed them and had to wait.

 

[hockey mom]

I think I would also go for Pop. This way you can spread out a bit more and 2 bathrooms is a huge plus. One night I would head to FW anyway just to check out all the decorations at the WL and then carry on over.

 

[DisneyLisa]

For such a short stay I'd choose POP. It's a really cute resort & your kids will love it. If you were staying longer, the convenience of a cabin might be worthwhile but for a short stay, I wouldn't bother. Also the savings in the room would pay for a few quick meals in the food court so you (Kathy) could have a more relaxing stay (ie. less work) . Plus as you mentioned, 2 bathrooms for 6 people is a definite plus. I'll be staying at POP in 2 weeks (with TimNDansMom) and can't wait. POFQ is my favourite resort but for a quick/cheap stay...POP can't be beat: nice, brand new, great (in-your-face) theming that kids love, great food court & fantastic bus service.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[hellooothere]

Thanks for the tips!
I decided to stick with POP. I phoned today to get a fridge for 1 of the rooms. I think we will head to Trails End Buffet for our dinner on the 6th just so we can check out Fort Wilderness. I was really excited about the cabin but think it would be better if we were staying there all week so we could enjoy the resort.
Pop looks like it will be really fun for all the kids. Maybe DH and I will get a chance for a drink poolside (I hear some of the drinks at Petals are pretty good).
It will be nice to have the extra bathroom and space with the 2 rooms.

How is transportation for Early Entry? We are sort of planning on 2 crazy jam packed days (I have included room breaks on the first day though). We will have a rental car so I am wondering if it would be better/faster to drive to the parks.

Here is my tentative schedule:
December 6th - Pick up rental car - stop at Publix/Super Wal-Mart for drinks/snacks/milk/breakfast cereal etc.
Check into POP at approx. 6pm
If kids aren't too exhausted head over to MK and go for a monorail ride. Head over to Fort Wilderness or Beaches and Cream for dinner? (which one do you think)

December 7 - Early Entry at MGM - stay until 11:30 (Dad's can't miss ToT, DS can't miss RRC, Mom's can't miss Great Movie Ride, twins can't miss Playhouse Disney). Head back to hotel for early lunch and nap/swim for kids. At around 3:00pm head to MK. Ride a few rides and then check into CRT for 4:20PS (celebrating our twins 4th birthday ). Pick up our MVMCP armbands(not quite sure how this works- we have tickets - do we show them when we enter the park at 3? - we have ParkHoppers and will have used the day already at MGM so I know we can get in early - just not sure how they tell that we have tickets for MVMCP. Enjoy the shows. Head back to POP? By car? By bus? what is your experience with Disney transportation after this type of event.

December 8 - Early Entry at Epcot - stay until PS at Princess Storybook Breakfast 11:40am. Then drive? to Animal Kingdom - ride Kali River Rapids (my daughter's can't miss) and see FOTLK(my can't miss).
Then headback to MGM for Fantasmic? or Epcot Illuminations?

What do you think? Is it doable? Am I insane? I know it sounds crazy but ....we only have the 2 days before our week on the beach. So we will be recovering in a very comfortable place with a very big hot tub for our sore feet.
Will we survive?

Thanks for your input and ideas. I love the Disboards!