I'm so torn. Magic Kingdom area or Epcot area?

[pigletgirl]

My husband and I are going for a long weekend next Sept and we immediately knew we wanted to stay in the Epcot resort area. It'll be F&W and we want to genuinely enjoy Epcot without littles with us. We will be at the Boardwalk and I cannot wait!

We love AKL too. It's beautiful and if Jiko is open by then we will plan a meal there as well.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

WL and BW are my 2 favorite resorts so I can understand why you are second guessing. If you had a longer stay I would suggest a split stay but for 4 nights that would be a lot of work. I think one thing I would consider is how much time will you be spending at the resort? I love both but I think if you are going to be spending more time at the resort then I would choose WL. It is just such a great resort to go to for being able to relax and just enjoy the atmosphere. You can still enjoy going to the BW. Maybe go in the evening of your Epcot day. Honestly though you can't go wrong with either resort. For me I like AKL but it was a once and done for us because of the transportation. Just took too long to get anywhere. At least at WL or BW you are close to at least one park

 

[DIS Lifer]

Could always split it: 2 nights epcot area, 2 nights mk

 

[SandyinMonterey]

I'm a little bias because it's my home resort but I'm going with WL. I like that you're still in the "bubble" but not on overload. After a long park day, it's nice to be at WL. I've stayed at BC once and it is a beautiful resort, I feel that WL food options (especially quick serve) was better. We really enjoy going to Geyser Point, sitting by the water and enjoying a drink with a snack.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

With WL we can boat to Magic Kingdom.

Keep in mind that the boat is *nice* but it isn't *fast*.

I'd pick Wilderness Lodge just because I like it better than the others, but it loses on convenience by a mile.

 

[crzy4dsny]

Best way to do it is a split stay.

 

[Suzabella]

I'm going to say split stay also. We own DVC points at Boulder Ridge and Board Walk for exactly what you are debating.

 

[chimo2u]

When I say no kids, I guess I should have said no kids/adults. LOL. My children are 18 and 22 and her daughter is 18. My kids are totally adventurous when it comes to food. Food is my 22 year olds favorite part of Disney. And I do love World Showcase foods and the restaurants on the Boardwalk. UGH!! Such decisions.

I'm having the exact same conundrum as you! My "kids" are joining us, 2 boys who are 26/30 by the time we go in October 2022. We are only staying 3 nights/2days prior to our cruise, just for a small taste of MK/and DHS....1 for nostalgia and one for Rise of the resistance and slinky dog dash, LOL.... We don't even have a park hopper this trip, but it keeps sneaking into my brain that I should maybe add one on..... but then I get a reality check that I don't wish to be dragged around all hours of the day and night LOL, I love alot of the restaurants in around Epcot/boardwalk area, so that pulls me too....however, we could also just plan our favourite Yachtmans for our DHS night and take the boat over to YC from DHS..... I finally went with WL Club Level for now (as it's one of the best on property) also WL just underwent refurbishment so the rooms should be nice! WL also is costing $1,500 less than YC and $3,000 less than POLY (with no CL room except the priciest theme park rooms right now)... We have stayed AKL many trips in club level, and it is lovely and was our family favourite for many trips....however, I feel we have just outgrown it and it feels so removed, we would like to try something new. I understand the struggle, it is real! So what did you end up choosing?? The plus of WL is also that it is close to MK and has the MK feel being in the MK resort area...something magical about that area where you are right in the bubble

 

[Haygar2]

I'm having the exact same conundrum as you! My "kids" are joining us, 2 boys who are 26/30 by the time we go in October 2022. We are only staying 3 nights/2days prior to our cruise, just for a small taste of MK/and DHS....1 for nostalgia and one for Rise of the resistance and slinky dog dash, LOL.... We don't even have a park hopper this trip, but it keeps sneaking into my brain that I should maybe add one on..... but then I get a reality check that I don't wish to be dragged around all hours of the day and night LOL, I love alot of the restaurants in around Epcot/boardwalk area, so that pulls me too....however, we could also just plan our favourite Yachtmans for our DHS night and take the boat over to YC from DHS..... I finally went with WL Club Level for now (as it's one of the best on property) also WL just underwent refurbishment so the rooms should be nice! WL also is costing $1,500 less than YC and $3,000 less than POLY (with no CL room except the priciest theme park rooms right now)... We have stayed AKL many trips in club level, and it is lovely and was our family favourite for many trips....however, I feel we have just outgrown it and it feels so removed, we would like to try something new. I understand the struggle, it is real! So what did you end up choosing?? The plus of WL is also that it is close to MK and has the MK feel being in the MK resort area...something magical about that area where you are right in the bubble

We still have awhile until our trip. 177 days to be exact. LOL. As of now, and unless something major happens, we are staying at WL. I figured out a discount based on the current offer and WL is still cheaper than the others. I like being able to take the boat to MK. And we will spend the most time at MK. My friend, who is going with me, loves Cinderella. I'm going to do my very best to get a reservation to CRT towards the end of our trip. So I want to be close enough that even if we just have to pop into MK for dinner we can. She had a house fire in July 2021 and still isn't back into her house. Not 24 hours after the fire, her mother in law unexpectedly passed away. This trip is not only to celebrate my 50th, but to help her have a better July.

 

[trompettecon]

I love having time to plan a trip, but then I hate it, too. I have too much time to make changes or obsess that I've made the wrong choice. I am going next summer with just myself and my friend. No husbands. No kids. We are going to celebrate my 50th birthday. We will be there for 4 nights and 3 park days. We are not doing Hollywood Studios this trip. Right now I have us staying at Wilderness Lodge. One minute I'm content with that decision. I like the idea of a more laid back feeling when we are at the resort. The next I'm thinking we should stay at the Boardwalk because of the boardwalk and the fun we could have in the evenings. With WL we can boat to Magic Kingdom. Obviously with BWI we can walk to Epcot. What to do?

The beauty of the BW area is that you can do 3 parks without getting on a bus or in your car. You can walk or boat to EC & HS and you can take the monorail to MK.

 

[oyalkut]

The beauty of the BW area is that you can do 3 parks without getting on a bus or in your car. You can walk or boat to EC & HS and you can take the monorail to MK.

I am not sure that you can conveniently monorail to MK, because BW is on the back side of Epcot while the monorail at the front. So you have to walk through Epcot to get to the monorail. Without a park reservation at Epcot, you can’t walk through it.

All that said, I would also choose to stay on BW on an adult-only trip. Any park is accessible by bus in the morning, enjoy Epcot for dinner/drinks at nigh, then a quick walk to my hotel

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

I am not sure that you can conveniently monorail to MK, because BW is on the back side of Epcot while the monorail at the front. So you have to walk through Epcot to get to the monorail. Without a park reservation at Epcot, you can’t walk through it.

All that said, I would also choose to stay on BW on an adult-only trip. Any park is accessible by bus in the morning, enjoy Epcot for dinner/drinks at nigh, then a quick walk to my hotel

Yeah that is my thought too. You would have to have an Epcot reservation and then you couldn't go to MK until 2. Wish there was a way to get to it without going through the park.

 

[Haygar2]

I had thought about a split stay, but quite honestly, I don't like the idea of having to pack up my stuff twice on my vacation. I like putting down my stuff and know I'm not going anywhere for a few days. Now, if we were there for 10 days, I would consider it. Being that we are only there for 4 nights, I don't think we will switch.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

I had thought about a split stay, but quite honestly, I don't like the idea of having to pack up my stuff twice on my vacation. I like putting down my stuff and know I'm not going anywhere for a few days. Now, if we were there for 10 days, I would consider it. Being that we are only there for 4 nights, I don't think we will switch.

Oh yeah a 4 day trip is way too short for a split stay in my opinion. We are doing a split stay but we have 9 nights

 

[NavyDad]

We still have awhile until our trip. 177 days to be exact. LOL. As of now, and unless something major happens, we are staying at WL. I figured out a discount based on the current offer and WL is still cheaper than the others. I like being able to take the boat to MK. And we will spend the most time at MK. My friend, who is going with me, loves Cinderella. I'm going to do my very best to get a reservation to CRT towards the end of our trip. So I want to be close enough that even if we just have to pop into MK for dinner we can. She had a house fire in July 2021 and still isn't back into her house. Not 24 hours after the fire, her mother in law unexpectedly passed away. This trip is not only to celebrate my 50th, but to help her have a better July.

I think you can't go wrong with WL. My wife and I visit there pretty much every trip. We love the atmosphere, it feels a little more quiet and out of the way but it's just a short water taxi ride to MK. That boat ride early in the morning or just before dusk is so peaceful and if the weather is calm the water looks like glass.

That said, our all time favorite trip was staying at Beach Club. The International Gateway at Epcot was like 70 steps from our bedroom door and we dined in a different country in Epcot every night which was amazing.

 

[Hopfather28]

One thing to consider...it's going to be July. And if you're relying on boat transportation in July from WL to MK you will likely find yourself stuck without boats due to lightning at some point during your trip.

 

[ktink]

DH & I just returned last week. We did a split stay at BWI & GF. I haven't stayed at WL yet but would like to do so one day.

I would hands down choose BWI for an adult trip. While I enjoyed having the convenience of the monorail at GF.. I enjoyed the BW area so much more. We took advantage of the close proximity to WS. We had a water view directly on the BW. I just can't say enough about this resort!