Help a first timer with ??'s

[Msslaydbug]

There is Way too much info to find out when planning your first trip to WDW !! I have already bought 3 diffrent Disney World books found numerous websites but Thank goodness for these boards !! I think they will be a lifesaver

This will be our first trip to WDW - it will be me , Dh and our DS who will be 5. When we went to Disneyland 2 years ago we had a nice relaxing trip. We toured during the morning , went back to the hotel napped, swam, did other California things, and then went back at night usually until close. We are not the gung ho nazi type tourists

I am having a very hard time deciding on where to stay. There are so many choices. We will be buying at least one Annual pass so we can recieve the great room discounts. But we are having a very hard time deciding on exactly WHERE to stay.

We want to split our stay between two resorts just can't decide which ones. Any comments on which is better ?

All Star / Poly ( and what is the diffrence between Poly and Poly Concierge ??)

AKL/WL

CB/ Poly

All Star/ WL

HELP !!! I am on Disney overload !!!!

 

[mmexpress]

On my 1st trip I stayed at Port Orleans (now French Qtr) I've also stayed at Riverside we love them both not as pricey as the deluxes beautifully themed quick ride to all the parks and now the boatride to downtown is back. My opinion is try a moderate first. I did and I love it!!!

 

[pat fan]

We have stayed at the Music & the Movies our last two trips.Next time we were considering a moderate(French Quarter)but our kids said they wanted to stay at a "real" Disney resort,meaning the ALLStars!

I guess to them the larger than life Disney icons and theming seemed more "Disney-ish" than the other themes.Since you are bringing a child with you,that is something to consider.My DH and I decided if we were ever to go by ourselves,we'd stay at the FQ,but any trip with kids would be at the ALLStars.

 

[GeorgeG]

From the choices you posted and the clue about liking to relax, I would suggest one of the moderate resorts (CBR, PO) followed by either the WL or Y&BC.

There are no "bad" choices, though. You need to decide which themes most appeal to you.

Enjoy your vacation

 

[ContempoSMT]

Of your chocies i would pick the AKL/WL. I was going to stay at AKL last june but changed it to WL. The WL is soo cool and theming is the best part. Go with this option.

 

[mikewdw]

i would try both levels, deluxe and value so you can get a comparison. most people who split say save best resort for last. all stars are wonderfully fun but dont have all of the amenities. havent been to WL (going in june!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) but loved AKL so sounds like a good split to me.
good luck,
mikewdw

 

[eeyore0062]

My choices out of the ones that you mentioned would be the CBR and the Poly...doing the CBR 1st!

 

[elemusing]

I have never been fortunate enough to stay at one of the more expensive, but heed my advice - once you stay at a moderate, you will never go back to one of the All Stars. The staff at the All Stars is just not as good. There are alot of tour groups and school groups that stay there and it was not enjoyable for us at all.

We have stayed at PO and CBR and LOVE CBR. We are trying out CS in 49 days! So far, CBR is our favorite.

 

[luvthemouse97]

Hi Lori-I've just read your post and I am shocked our stories are identical.We will be traveling on our first wdw trip 11/15-11/23.I also will be traveling with my dh and ds (will be age 5),I totally understand how over whelming this can be!!the biggest thing that has helped me is this board, the numerous books and the WDW website(disneyworld.com)They have pictures of the different resorts,there is also another web site-I believe it is dizneyworld.net it has a ton of pictures of all the resorts.I agree that you need to decide which theming is best for you.We chose a moderate so that we can have a restaurant as well as a food court and the waterslide will be a big plus!Good Luck!!

Lori

Disneyland 2000,2001
CBR 11/02 - I can't wait!!

 

[Janet2k]

Msslaydbug, first off, don’t worry about which resort(s) you choose. Choose ‘em and be done with it. You can second-guess yourself to death with a WDW vacation, believe me (and do NOT follow my second-guessing-to-death example that I am trying very hard to overcome, hee hee). You really can’t go wrong with any of the WDW resorts, they all are unique and have something different to offer.

I have stayed at the GF, BWV, BWI, CSR, Contemp, CBR, YC, OKW, WL, and AKL. I had a wonderful stay at each of them and have never been disappointed in any of my accommodations. I adore the BW for its hustle & bustle, and I adore the AKL for its laziness and relax-ability. Usually I choose a resort based upon what type of vacation experience I want. And usually I split my vacations into multiple resorts so that I can experience different things. My next vacation is booked at the BCV but I am debating adding a Contemporary stay in the middle of it since we might want to Grand Plan again (that is one of Disney’s vacation packages).

If you do a value and a moderate/deluxe resort, do the value first and the higher category resort next. I think it is always fun to stay at one resort, have your socks knocked off, then switch to another resort and have your socks knocked off again. You will get that if you do a value and then a moderate/deluxe resort. Disney has a wonderful way of surprising you with each of their resorts. Of course magic is really how you perceive it, so try to leave yourself open to experience whatever comes your way. And don’t forget to experience the joy in the simple things, too, like chatting with another mother as you wait for your resort bus. Or going down that water slide for the millionth time with your ecstatic child.

By the way, Disneyland is nothing like Disney World. Prepared to be amazed.

 

[tar heel]

I agree with Janet2k -- don't fret over the resort. Each Disney resort is wonderful in its own way. We've stayed at four -- yc, poly, cbr and po-r -- and loved them all. Our main resort consideration is budgetary -- we're staying at po-r this year b/c we need to make this a less expensive trip than some of our previous ones.

I want to add that 5 is the perfect age for a first wdw trip. We took each of our older two boys the first time when they were 5. We had planned to do the same for our third but just couldn't wait and took him a few months early when he was almost 5. At that age, kids are totally open to ALL the magic, characters, etc., but are big/old enough to walk themselves (but still small enough to ride on someone's back) and to qualify for most attractions.

Have a wonderful time!

 

[Grumpy92]

Of your selections I would choose the WL/AKL. We love the moderates especially PO and CSR. The AS are a great cost saver but we have found them noisy and very crowded. It seems like everytime we have stayed there they are filled with cheerleading groups who practice early and late outside our room. The moderates tend to be a little quieter then the values and the rooms are a little larger. As for the deluxe WL is probably our favorite, the resort is amazing. AKL is very similar but you cant beat the animals right outside your door.
Keep those questions coming. We love helping.

 

[donnamerry]

ContempoSMT noticed you are going in 12 wks, so are we! 89 days from today! LOL! We (my son, sister and I) are starting at AKL for 2 nights then moving either to WL or Poly! (or BC)! ha