Moderate vs. Deluxe

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

When comparing the Wilderness Lodge to the Animal Kingdom Lodge I personally would choose the Wilderness Lodge because I think they have a much better overall location, theme and more transportation options.

 

[glocon]

Never stayed at WL, but definitely would like to some day. Loved AKL! To me the ambiance of the AKL was more appealing than WL, though WL is beautiful (went to WCC). We have lived in Wisconsin, and so WL was not so special in our minds, and since we probably will never visit Africa, AKL won out for us. There is much to see and do there, and you can take a Sunrise Safari (we didn't, but would have liked to)- sounds kind of romantic to me. Either place would be a vacation to remeber forever.

 

[disneyobessed]

Another fan of WL here.. LOVE it. WE have stayed at Por and are actually staying there for a split stay next Aug.. we are actually debating on changing it to WL! POR and WL are our favorite non DVC resorts.. with that being said.. AKV is our least favorite. ITs just too far from everything and the food court isnt that great.. Its up to your taste.. being from MA. the whole Rocky Mt. feel was just cool and its just so invititing when you walk into the lobby.. such a familiar feel to it. Like you are home. I didnt get that at ALL at AKL.

 

[Princesss]

If you're going for a special occasion, I would say go for it. We went to AKL for our honeymoon, with a Savannah view. Where else in the US can you watch zebras and giraffes while sitting on your own patio and enjoying a glass of wine? We really did stay at the parks until closing every night, and only took a mid-day break once, but it was still worth it! The view in the morning was breathtaking, I woke up every morning shouting, "This IS Disney"! If it were in my budget, I would always stay at AKL.

 

[Planogirl]

AKL and WL are very similar in some ways. The biggest difference is that one has the whole African with lots of animals theming going on while the WL is more rustic. I would go with your preference in theming and who has the best deals when you book if that matters. We personally prefer the AKL's theming but it's a matter of personal taste. WL is closer to MK but we had no trouble using AKL's transportation at the time.

 

[tinkjess73]

Thank you for all your suggestions! I am still not sure however if it is going to be worth it to us to move up to a deluxe. We truly do love POR. We just thought since it was a special event we might upgrade. Right now its between an extra night at POR or upgrade to a deluxe for one less night....

 

[vllygrrl]

I agree with those who say "If you can afford to, do it"...but just for this trip, because it is a special occasion. I LOVE POR, but I also love the feeling of being at a deluxe. DH and I are staying at AKL in November for our 10th anniversary, however, next summer when we bring my parents and my son we are staying in a Fort Wilderness Cabin. While I'm sure we will love that too, it's just a different feel.

I agree with those who have pointed out that with the deluxes, proximity to a park is a major factor - don't discount this. At Wilderness Lodge, you can hop the boat directly to the MK, or to the Contemporary to catch a couple monorails off to Epcot. It's definitely worth doing at least once.

 

[Disneydenise]

Just my opinion but we go back and forth over resorts. We always rent a car because my husband just likes to have a car. He doesn't like taking the buses when he wants to go he wants to go. When the children were young we would drive to Disney from Philadelphia area. When we got there we were all done with being in the car and driving and we did have to go back home so we would use the bus system and we were very satified with it. We would stay for 10 nights so we did have to conserve funds somewhere and we chose our accomodations. The POR was our choice and we still love it.
When the children got older and our funding became better we chose to stay at the Deluxe resorts because we loved the services and the close proximity to the Magic Kingdom we love to watch the fireworks from the beach. We usually chose the Poly when staying Deluxe. It is just a personal choice for us. Now it is just DH and myself but when the kids can join us they are happy with what ever we select. It is a free vaction for them.
When we chose to stay at a Moderate we chose POR and we love it. The room size is fine for us since it is only DH and myself.
We are fortunate that we can go so often and I am fine with staying only a few days now because I know I will be back again perhaps in a year.
I like to stay on property when we go to Disney but occasionally I have stayed of and I have stayed at many lovely resorts in the Orlando area. I do chose a higher end resort when I am off property.
Florida is a great close get away and sometimes you can get great rates.
If I was going on a once in a lifetime trip I would chose the resort that most fit my checkbook. I would advise you stay on property it does enhance the experience.
Happy planning.