Moderate vs. Deluxe

[tinkjess73]

My husband and I are going to be heading to Disney next September for our 5 year wedding anniversary. We typically stay at POR. However we were thinking of maybe going deluxe this time. Is it really worth the extra $?

 

[MCK588]

Did you have a resort in mind?

 

[tinkjess73]

We were thinking one of the less expensive ones. Either Animal Kingdom or Wilderness.

 

[honeydiane1953]

My husband and I are going to be heading to Disney next September for our 5 year wedding anniversary. We typically stay at POR. However we were thinking of maybe going deluxe this time. Is it really worth the extra $?

It's like comparing apples to oranges. It has been discussed many times. For me YES it is worth going deluxe. I stayed at a Mod one time and the landscaping was great. Then went deluxe and Wow what a difference. I guess the answer is IF you can comfortably afford it and try. You will be spoiled and for me I haven't gone back to mods.

 

[skipperkim]

My husband and I are going to be heading to Disney next September for our 5 year wedding anniversary. We typically stay at POR. However we were thinking of maybe going deluxe this time. Is it really worth the extra $?

I had a similar circumstance last trip, my 50th birthday. I still wish I'd choose AKL instead of CSR.

 

[tinkjess73]

If we do decide to go deluxe anyone have a suggestion as to the animal kingdom vs wilderness?

 

[KatMark]

Since you've chosen two of the cheapest deluxes, I would do it (I would personally pick AKL over WL for many reasons including the food court is much better than WL). On the other hand, we personally don't find it worth it anymore, but then we've done our fair amount of time at deluxes and we thoroughly enjoy saving the money and staying moderate now. It really comes down to how much you plan on spending at the resort and how much you plan on using the resort restaurants, etc.

 

[newrygirl]

we have stayed at por and cbr many times and this time decided to try a deluxe, we just returned yesterday from 10 nights at the contemporary and 4 nights at the wilderness lodge, yes they were nice but in the end I don't think they are worth the extra money and from now on will go back to por, I found the food courts in the deluxe's have a very small selection, we even drove to por to have lunch because we were so dissatisified with our food courts. Honestly I would stick with por, which has beautiful landscaping and enjoy the extra money on something else

 

[sue1073]

We really enjoyed our stay at the WL. It's proximity to MK made it worth it for us.

 

[Sarahleigh]

AKL is a beautiful resort.. and I'd say if you can afford it then go for it!

 

[mdsd8700]

We prefer WL over AKL. The proximity to MK is definately a plus. We always rent a car so transportation is never an issue. The WL just has a vibe we love. I know some people don't like how "far out" AKL is, but it just doesn't hold an appeal for us and has nothing to with location. As far as Moderate vs. Deluxe. I think it all depends on what you like on vacation. For us the resort is part of the trip. Some people see it as only a place to sleep for us it is much more than that. I don't like not having indoor corridors at the moderates, we are not food court or counter service people so the moderates work against us in that area. With that being said the moderate resorts are lovely and we sometimes like to visit them while on our "resort shopping" days. For us it was always worth the money for the deluxe hotels and wouldn't consider anything else, but either way you are in Disney!! Happy Anniversary. We just celebrated 21 years!

 

[Kae]

having stayed at both, I can tell you can not go wrong with either. And would I spend the extra you betcha. We stay at WL for are 10th & loved it. The boat is great we took the boat to CR every morning got coffee at the coffee place & then went to the park of our choice. Now I have to tell you that our room was the farthest from the bus stop so taking the boat to CR saved us some steps & was a great way to start the day. We also would not stay at AKL without a savannah view-for us it is worth the extra.

Kae

 

[eeyoreland]

We've stayed at both and I agree, you won't go wrong with either. At WL, you can take the boat to MK and they have the bike trails and water rentals (pontoons, boats, etc.), which made WL a lot of fun. But I think AKL is beautiful. I guess of the two, AKL has a bit of an edge with my family.

We are thinking of doing a split stay our next trip. I want to try places we've never been. So we're thinking POFQ and BC, but ... I'm afraid we'll be disappointed at a moderate having spent the last 6 or so trips at a deluxe. Anyone have any comments on that?

 

[KatMark]

We've stayed at both and I agree, you won't go wrong with either. At WL, you can take the boat to MK and they have the bike trails and water rentals (pontoons, boats, etc.), which made WL a lot of fun. But I think AKL is beautiful. I guess of the two, AKL has a bit of an edge with my family.

We are thinking of doing a split stay our next trip. I want to try places we've never been. So we're thinking POFQ and BC, but ... I'm afraid we'll be disappointed at a moderate having spent the last 6 or so trips at a deluxe. Anyone have any comments on that?

Every person is different and every person's likes/dislikes, needs/wants, etc., is different. I can tell you that we stayed at either the CR or the Poly our first seven trips, and we have spent the last nine out of ten at a moderate and we've never regretted it at all.

 

[DLo]

I think if it is in your budget - try the deluxe for your special occasion. We have stayed at both AKL and WL and liked both. I think since it is your anniversary I would pick akl as it has better dining options. (though artist point does get good reviews) Both have beautiful lobbies and great atmosphere. If dining options wouldn't be a deciding factor for you, either would be great. Check out each resorts faq thread and maybe the resort pic thread to see if that can help you decide. Good luck and I don't think you can go wrong either way.

 

[kaligal]

It depends on how much extra money you have and how much you value things such as valet parking, room service, etc.

IMO, yeah, it is.

I much prefer AKL to WL, but it is really a matter of which theme you like best. The resorts are extremely similar. Almost clones. Pick the theme you like and run with it.

 

[rotlex]

We just came back from a 10 night stay at AKL. We LOVED it there, and it was our first deluxe stay in quite some time. (We usually stay value or mod but figured we would splurge a bit this year).

Anyway, while we did enjoy the lodge, the views, and the room, when all was said and done, I don't think we will be staying deluxe again. Overall, it cost us roughly 1K more than staying at a mod for the same number of nights, and 1k to 1500 more than a value. Again, we LOVED the AKL, BUT, with the extra money we spent, we could have bought a LOT of souvenirs, LOL.

I guess it all comes down to what you are looking for in a Disney vacation. Again, I cannot overstate how much we enjoyed AKL, but, in the end, we realized, we spend 95% of our time in the parks, not in the room. Sure, we like a nice pool and all that, but that is not why our family goes to WDW, and again, for the extra money, we could add extra nights, or buy a heck of a lot of stuff.

Go for it if you want the experience. We just booked our trip for next year, at Port Orleans Riverside, and I can't wait for that either, as it is the one mod we have not stayed at, although we did stay at POFQ a few years ago, and enjoyed it.

Have fun in whatever you pick!

 

[SGMCO]

we have only stayed at MODs on pass trips: CSR, POR and POFQ and POR is our Favorite.

This trip we're celebrating our 25th Anniversary and staying at AKL.
We will be there in 3 weeks. I can report back after trip to let you know how I liked it compared to POR.
Not sure if we will ever be able to afford to
stay at a Deluxe in the future. We will definately be staying at POR again.

 

[Microcell]

We loved WL our last stay.. and you can see in my signature we are usually all stars people.. We had one problem with WL and it was the lack of eating options for breakfast.. We come from the midwest so we could swing a cat in any direction and get the food they offer at Whispering Canyon so we didn't go there.

Other than breakfast eating issues, we ADORED WL! I don't think you can go wrong especially if you make 8:00 ADR's at Crystal Palace so you can get empty park pics!

We are not animal people.. we can't even get to our local zoo on a yearly basis so AKL wasn't even an option for us. It really depends on what you like, and if you like the Yellowstone northwest vibe you gotta go to WL!

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

We've stayed at AKL & WL and like them both because you can get from your room to the restaraunts, shopping or the lobby with out having to go outside. We also prefer queen size beds. At the WL you can take a great boat ride to the MK. You are very close to 4 other resorts which gives you lots of choices for dining. And if you're not in a rush you can take a boat to the CR, jump on the monorail to the TTC & catch the monorail to Epcot. For us we prefer to spend the extra $ to stay at one these two deluxe resorts since they are the least expensive.