I'm more confused than ever!!Pop, CSR or WL?? Help!!

[DisneyFan09]

Okay, after changing my mind a million times on which resort to stay at I finally decided to just go the cheap route and stay at Pop Century. But after watching the resort section on my new Vacation Planning DVD I'm back to the drawing board.
I have some pro's and con's for my choices and I'd love some input!!

Pop Century - I've stayed there before but dh and dd's have not and they thought it looked like the most fun!! The price is definitely right but my dh is 6'2" and weighs about 240 pounds and I am worried about sleeping in double beds for 8 nights.

Coronado Springs - I've never stayed there but it looks beautiful and dd's are extremely interested in the pool area and playground. Based on rack-rate prices it will cost $456 more than Pop and I think we will still be facing double beds. Is it worth the additional cost?

Wilderness Lodge - DH is an avid outdoorsman and this trip is an attempt to convert him and I think that he would love this resort. Plus we would have queen beds. I do have a couple of concerns about this resort including price, probably about $900 more than Pop, bus service has seemed a little hit or miss lately (based on recent reviews) and the pool area does seem a little small.

Oh please can someone help me with this decision, it's driving me and everyone in my family nuts!!!

 

[scanne]

We have stayed at the WL 3 times and ALL 3 times we've had excellent service and transportation! The WL is the resort that converted my Dad! He now askes me when I'm planning the next trip and looks forward to our stays at WL. The lobby is breathtaking! The theming is everywhere. We love the WL!!! We've booked our 4th stay for next October and our 5th stay will be in 2007.

You cannot go wrong with the WL!

 

[DisneyFan09]

We have stayed at the WL 3 times and ALL 3 times we've had excellent service and transportation! The WL is the resort that converted my Dad! He now askes me when I'm planning the next trip and looks forward to our stays at WL. The lobby is breathtaking! The theming is everywhere. We love the WL!!! We've booked our 4th stay for next October and our 5th stay will be in 2007.

You cannot go wrong with the WL!

Thank you for your input, WL sounds wonderful and I know we would love it, I just can't decide if it's worth an extra $900 over Pop Century.

 

[scanne]

I think it is SO worth the extra $$$. I've stayed at a value twice. They were loud, crowded and had some of the least magical CM's. At the WL and Polynesian (our other favorite) CM's have been extremely friendly, these two resorts are impeccable, the noise level was never noticed to be anything but calm and any problems we encoutered (maybe 2 total) were dealt with swiflty and courteously. Can't say that about ASMu. I had a MAJOR problem with housekeeping leaving my door ajar and the resort manager acted like I was inconveniencing him. It was awful.

I'm a deluxe resort girl, for sure.

I've stayed at Coronado and although the pool area is great, the food court is not the best set-up and it's a large resort. The WL has all its rooms in one building - it is SO convenient!

 

[dixiedizfan]

DisneyFan09: Wow ... $900 is an awful lot for a bigger bed, but the choice is yours. Anyhow, how long did it take for you to receive the vacation video? I ordered ours almost a month ago and we're still waiting!

 

[Chrissi242]

We are staying at VWL in March 2006, DH is also an avid outdoorsman and that was a factor for us! That would NEVER be a bad choice. GO FOR IT!!

 

[Chrissi242]

I think you can never go wrong staying at the Wilderness Lodge. GO for it!

 

[DisneyFan09]

DisneyFan09: Wow ... $900 is an awful lot for a bigger bed, but the choice is yours. Anyhow, how long did it take for you to receive the vacation video? I ordered ours almost a month ago and we're still waiting!

See that's why this decision is so hard. How do I justify that much money for a place that we do little more than sleep at?

I'm not sure how long it took to get the DVD but it must have been a really long time because I had forgotten that I had even ordered it, it was just a nice surprise in my mailbox yesterday!!

Scanne - I have also stayed at the Polynesian and that is my absolute favorite and if I could swing it I would do it in a heartbeat. Definitely can not justify that one!! I thought WL would be a happy medium.

 

[The Sweetness]

Heres how I see it. I have always stayed offsite except for once. That one time was nice, and Ill do it again in 07 (hopefully) My fam uses the hotel for showering, changing, sleeping, laundry and parking the car. So it doesnt make sense for me to spend more than I have to for a room.

 

[eblack0409]

I have only stayed at POP, and while I loved it, if I had the opportunity to do a deluxe I wouldn't pass it up! My DH and I were crowded in the double beds..I am 5ft and he is 5-10...so with your DH being tall, if nothing else, go with CSR....it's a moderate so it's in the middle...and at least you can get a queen bed!

Good luck...

 

[sue1013]

If your DH is going to be uncomfortable sleeping a double bed for a week I would think that would put a damper on the vacation. I wouldn't be in the best mood if I didn't sleep well for a week. What more reason do you need to justify the cost difference? A crabby DH does not equal an enjoyable vacation.

 

[Buzz2001]

If money is a big issue, stay with Pop and use you save on meals and other items. We love CSR and have had 9 great trips there over the years.

 

[kizmac]

Your DH is an avid outdoorsman? WL hands down. I visited it during our stay at POR this past trip along with POP and WL was awesome. I do think it is worth the extra $900. You won't only be getting bigger beds, but a totally different vacation. Go for it! DH will love it. If you decide not to.....then I say go with CSR over POP. Same size beds yes, but again a different kind of vacation feel. Not that POP is bad, but if you are trying to convert DH to loving a Disney vacation, I don't think POP is the way to go.JMO!

As for the buses. You will have possible trouble no matter where you stay. It happens. My mom and I took a bus from POR to MK to resort hop and we did wait quite a while for the WL bus. I almost gave up waiting. But, it was the middle of the afternoon and maybe we had just missed one. There is always the boat which we did take from WL and that was very nice.

Oh, I do want to add that we have a king bed at home and DH is actually a little bigger than your DH and he did fine in the double at POR for the week. Him, and my 3 yr old and 11 yr old all slept in the one the one night. We always have kids in our bed though so it was no biggie being in the double. There were 3 kids in our king with us last night.

 

[DisneyFan09]

Thanks everyone for all of the great advice!! I do think I'm leaning towards WL. We are not going until next September so that gives me plenty of time to save and hope for a great code. I thought about renting points for a studio at VWL and staying at Pop for the weekend portion of the stay but dd's are not thrilled about sleeping on a sofa sleeper. We got a Sheraton Suites through Hotwire a couple of years ago and dd's had to sleep on a very uncomfortable sofa sleeper and think that all of them are that bad. Have any of you had any experience with VWL? Maybe I should post on the DVC board.


I would like to add that Pop Century does have a really fun atmosphere and maybe DH would be impressed with affordability more than comfort.

 

[DisneyFan09]

Oh, I do want to add that we have a king bed at home and DH is actually a little bigger than your DH and he did fine in the double at POR for the week. Him, and my 3 yr old and 11 yr old all slept in the one the one night. We always have kids in our bed though so it was no biggie being in the double. There were 3 kids in our king with us last night.

That is too funny!! We have a king bed at home too that is also always filled with kids and dogs!! Last night was me, dh, dd9, our lab who weighs 100 lbs. and the cat!! The cat was in the cocker spaniel's spot so he had to settle for one of my pillows on the floor next to the bed.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

Thank you for your input, WL sounds wonderful and I know we would love it, I just can't decide if it's worth an extra $900 over Pop Century.

we love teh WL we are booked at pop for dec but we were gonna up to atleast a mod we have never stayed mod or value

its 400 to upgrade to a mod and 900 for the WL
we just cant seem to make a decision

 

[HarryLeg]

If you can afford it go with WL. I use to think 'Why pay more, I only sleep there', but I found when younger kids are in the equation you don't just sleep there, you like the extras - more activities, better pools, and more food options. My son never was in the napping stage while staying at Disney but we still come back to the resort midday to swim and unwind so that we're ready for an evening in the parks.

 

[Lulu's Mom]

I have stayed at values always until this past OCT when we stayed at CSR and in Dec 2007 we plan to stay at WL. IMHO WL looks so nice and comforting. I agree with you about the extra cost.... this is why we pushed our trip back a year to be able to save more... but when we vacation to Disney it is not all about the Parks and we spend a good amount of our time at our resort area, and it seems that WL offers a good deal of activities... plus I love the ideas about Bunkbeds..... I think my DD would love to sleep in them when we go in 2 years...... I know so far away.

 

[*Fantasia*]

Go with WL... you husband will enjoy the queen beds. He will enjoy the outdorsy feeling.. WL is a beautiful resort. The pool is not small. And they have two jacuzzis!

If all you guys are only going to sleep at your resort.. then go with WL... two comfortable queen beds are nice!

 

[DisneyFan09]

I have stayed at values always until this past OCT when we stayed at CSR and in Dec 2007 we plan to stay at WL. IMHO WL looks so nice and comforting. I agree with you about the extra cost.... this is why we pushed our trip back a year to be able to save more... but when we vacation to Disney it is not all about the Parks and we spend a good amount of our time at our resort area, and it seems that WL offers a good deal of activities... plus I love the ideas about Bunkbeds..... I think my DD would love to sleep in them when we go in 2 years...... I know so far away.

We also like to spend time at the resort. I try to plan a couple of park days and then a resort day so that we have at least 2 days of sleeping in and hanging out at the pool.

One of the things that appeals to me about WL is it's close proximity to the monorail resorts. The Contemporary has our favorite arcade and it's only a boat ride away, my kids could spend hours there!!