Just booked my 9/25-10/2 Disney trip! I've been to WDW around 5 times since 2005, and I'm so excited because I'm doing things much differently this time. If you can try to get through this long-winded post about my trip-planning stresses and assure me that I did the right thing in the end, I would appreciate it. 
BACKGROUND INFO
I'm going with my boyfriend but I'm the main trip planner. I am a split-stay person at heart and don't mind moving at all; I actually think it's fun. My usual routine in the past has been to stay the first 1-2 nights at Pop and then switch over to a "semi-deluxe", meaning S/D or renting points at villas, because I have deluxe Epcot-area tastes
but can't justify spending deluxe prices on my budget.
Recently, I've been doing Pop-S/D because I turned into quite the S/D fan a few years back. I always start at Pop, rather than the other way around, because I love having Magical Express on arrival. I don't care much about it going back to the airport, but there is something so fun about getting on the official WDW bus and watching the video and getting all excited. This time, I planned to start at Art of Animation (Little Mermaid) instead of Pop because, well, it's new and shiny!
How I picked my dates: My favorite time to go is in mid-May because of warm/hot weather and lower crowds, but once I realized I could go to WDW this year there was no way I was waiting for May 2013. I can't go in mid-September but I figured late September/early Oct. would be the closest thing to May: low crowds, warm/hot weather (warm enough for Kali River Rapids - that is key!). Of course, I'll be worrying like crazy about hurricanes, but am hoping for the best.
Also of note: I'm an Extra Magic Hours person and book my whole trip around that schedule. More on that later in the post. Also, I only started planning a couple of weeks ago. I just recently realized I could go to WDW this year, and I'm SO impatient that I prefer to book closer to the trip so there's less "waiting time."
MY ORIGINAL BOOKINGS
The short version: For various reasons, I am pretty inflexible about my trip dates and ran into difficulties because of that. Originally I was booked at Art of Animation for the first two nights and then planned to switch to the S/D, but had to book S/D on two separate reservations (the 27th-checking out the 29th and the 30th-2nd) and because the night of September 29 is not available at either. So on 9/29, right in the middle of the trip, I was "resortless" and planning to stalk the S/D until it opened up. Furthermore, my S/D love has declined a bit recently. I did not feel good about my plan and ended up abandoning it.
The long version: I booked my first two nights at AoA right away, but then ran into trouble with the second part of the trip. Renting DVC points wasn't an option this time due to lack of availability, and I've been getting nervous about declining reviews at S/D. The rooms seemed a bit less well-kept the last time I was there in early 2011, plus, there are some availability problems the week I'm planning to go. Both S/D are blocked out on the 29th for a convention, which has happened to me before, and while I know it will open up eventually I didn't feel like stalking their website for the next few months. Also, things are really expensive right now everywhere, including S/D, for those last few days of my trip. The lowest price at the S/D was $229 for those last two nights... more than I want to pay for the quality of room I had last time, and especially when I would have to spend an extra $100 to get a towncar back to the airport.
So I wasn't feeling good about my trip at this point. But I didn't want to change the dates because I had already booked my flight for really cheap: $355 for two roundtrip tickets from Chicago with very convenient flight times. Another reason I felt "locked in" with 9/25-10/2 is because even though it's subject to change, I always book my Disney trips based on the Extra Magic Hours schedule. According to Disney's website, there is an MK evening EMH (12am) the night before I go home. So fun! I really prefer that instead of having the MK late hours near the beginning of my trip. I love my first glimpse of MK being on early entry day for rope drop, not at nighttime. And finally, based on the EMH schedule, I already had my dining reservations booked! So I wanted to keep my dates as they were. I was feeling anxious and unsettled until...
A CHANGE OF HEART
After playing around with different dates, hotels, scenarios, etc. for days, I came up with a completely new game plan.
It's time to splurge! The late summer room discount had Yacht/Beach garden view at an average of $258/night for my first 4 nights--after that, it gets incredibly expensive again (and I'd pick standard view to save more money, but it's not available). This is really pricey for me, but fairly low for Yacht/Beach, so it had me tempted. At first I didn't even consider doing it because I usually start at the value resort, and I already had AoA booked for the first two nights. But since the second half of my trip is very busy/expensive at Disney, I realized it would be much smarter to switch it around: Stay at a deluxe when it's cheap, and then book at AoA near the end when things are expensive. And hey, AoA is new to me... it will be exciting, not depressing, to move there, even if I'm coming from a deluxe.
One small problem, of course. I again ran into the issue of the elusive September 29. YC/BC were "cheap" from 9/25-checking out 9/29, so I figured I'd check into AoA on the 29th and stay until the end of my trip. However, AoA Little Mermaid isn't available on the 29th, and I certainly can't pay the exorbitant YC/BC prices for that extra night. Problem solved... I booked that one night at Pop. It's next door to AoA and I can just walk my luggage over. I don't even unpack at hotels anyway. Also, I'm going to keep checking for AoA to open up so I can hopefully add that day to my reservation.
Then I had the fun "stress" of whether to choose Yacht or Beach. What a problem to have!
In general, I'm a Beach Club person. I prefer the lobby and general vibe. However, I can walk around the Beach Club for free if I want to. When I'm paying $258 a night, I'm all about the rooms! Obviously the quality between the two will be similar, so it all comes down to personal taste. I looked at recent Tripadvisor pictures of the standard rooms and in the end, I went with the Yacht Club. Although they look perfectly nice, I just wasn't as much a fan of the very muted Beach Club colors and big wooden headboards. The nautical rooms in the Yacht look really cute to me!
Conclusion: This is my first time staying as a "real" guest at a legitimate Disney owned and operated deluxe resort. I never thought it would happen! I even get housekeeping because I'm not renting points...AHHHH! And Magical Express both ways... I'm loving this!
So in summary, I have the following booked right now:
First 4 nights - Splurging at Yacht Club while it's "cheap"
5th night - Pop but hoping to get AoA
6th and 7th nights - AoA little Mermaid
BACKGROUND INFO
I'm going with my boyfriend but I'm the main trip planner. I am a split-stay person at heart and don't mind moving at all; I actually think it's fun. My usual routine in the past has been to stay the first 1-2 nights at Pop and then switch over to a "semi-deluxe", meaning S/D or renting points at villas, because I have deluxe Epcot-area tastes
but can't justify spending deluxe prices on my budget. Recently, I've been doing Pop-S/D because I turned into quite the S/D fan a few years back. I always start at Pop, rather than the other way around, because I love having Magical Express on arrival. I don't care much about it going back to the airport, but there is something so fun about getting on the official WDW bus and watching the video and getting all excited. This time, I planned to start at Art of Animation (Little Mermaid) instead of Pop because, well, it's new and shiny!
How I picked my dates: My favorite time to go is in mid-May because of warm/hot weather and lower crowds, but once I realized I could go to WDW this year there was no way I was waiting for May 2013. I can't go in mid-September but I figured late September/early Oct. would be the closest thing to May: low crowds, warm/hot weather (warm enough for Kali River Rapids - that is key!). Of course, I'll be worrying like crazy about hurricanes, but am hoping for the best.
Also of note: I'm an Extra Magic Hours person and book my whole trip around that schedule. More on that later in the post. Also, I only started planning a couple of weeks ago. I just recently realized I could go to WDW this year, and I'm SO impatient that I prefer to book closer to the trip so there's less "waiting time."
MY ORIGINAL BOOKINGS
The short version: For various reasons, I am pretty inflexible about my trip dates and ran into difficulties because of that. Originally I was booked at Art of Animation for the first two nights and then planned to switch to the S/D, but had to book S/D on two separate reservations (the 27th-checking out the 29th and the 30th-2nd) and because the night of September 29 is not available at either. So on 9/29, right in the middle of the trip, I was "resortless" and planning to stalk the S/D until it opened up. Furthermore, my S/D love has declined a bit recently. I did not feel good about my plan and ended up abandoning it.
The long version: I booked my first two nights at AoA right away, but then ran into trouble with the second part of the trip. Renting DVC points wasn't an option this time due to lack of availability, and I've been getting nervous about declining reviews at S/D. The rooms seemed a bit less well-kept the last time I was there in early 2011, plus, there are some availability problems the week I'm planning to go. Both S/D are blocked out on the 29th for a convention, which has happened to me before, and while I know it will open up eventually I didn't feel like stalking their website for the next few months. Also, things are really expensive right now everywhere, including S/D, for those last few days of my trip. The lowest price at the S/D was $229 for those last two nights... more than I want to pay for the quality of room I had last time, and especially when I would have to spend an extra $100 to get a towncar back to the airport.
So I wasn't feeling good about my trip at this point. But I didn't want to change the dates because I had already booked my flight for really cheap: $355 for two roundtrip tickets from Chicago with very convenient flight times. Another reason I felt "locked in" with 9/25-10/2 is because even though it's subject to change, I always book my Disney trips based on the Extra Magic Hours schedule. According to Disney's website, there is an MK evening EMH (12am) the night before I go home. So fun! I really prefer that instead of having the MK late hours near the beginning of my trip. I love my first glimpse of MK being on early entry day for rope drop, not at nighttime. And finally, based on the EMH schedule, I already had my dining reservations booked! So I wanted to keep my dates as they were. I was feeling anxious and unsettled until...
A CHANGE OF HEART
After playing around with different dates, hotels, scenarios, etc. for days, I came up with a completely new game plan.
It's time to splurge! The late summer room discount had Yacht/Beach garden view at an average of $258/night for my first 4 nights--after that, it gets incredibly expensive again (and I'd pick standard view to save more money, but it's not available). This is really pricey for me, but fairly low for Yacht/Beach, so it had me tempted. At first I didn't even consider doing it because I usually start at the value resort, and I already had AoA booked for the first two nights. But since the second half of my trip is very busy/expensive at Disney, I realized it would be much smarter to switch it around: Stay at a deluxe when it's cheap, and then book at AoA near the end when things are expensive. And hey, AoA is new to me... it will be exciting, not depressing, to move there, even if I'm coming from a deluxe.
One small problem, of course. I again ran into the issue of the elusive September 29. YC/BC were "cheap" from 9/25-checking out 9/29, so I figured I'd check into AoA on the 29th and stay until the end of my trip. However, AoA Little Mermaid isn't available on the 29th, and I certainly can't pay the exorbitant YC/BC prices for that extra night. Problem solved... I booked that one night at Pop. It's next door to AoA and I can just walk my luggage over. I don't even unpack at hotels anyway. Also, I'm going to keep checking for AoA to open up so I can hopefully add that day to my reservation.
Then I had the fun "stress" of whether to choose Yacht or Beach. What a problem to have!
In general, I'm a Beach Club person. I prefer the lobby and general vibe. However, I can walk around the Beach Club for free if I want to. When I'm paying $258 a night, I'm all about the rooms! Obviously the quality between the two will be similar, so it all comes down to personal taste. I looked at recent Tripadvisor pictures of the standard rooms and in the end, I went with the Yacht Club. Although they look perfectly nice, I just wasn't as much a fan of the very muted Beach Club colors and big wooden headboards. The nautical rooms in the Yacht look really cute to me!Conclusion: This is my first time staying as a "real" guest at a legitimate Disney owned and operated deluxe resort. I never thought it would happen! I even get housekeeping because I'm not renting points...AHHHH! And Magical Express both ways... I'm loving this!
So in summary, I have the following booked right now:
First 4 nights - Splurging at Yacht Club while it's "cheap"
5th night - Pop but hoping to get AoA
6th and 7th nights - AoA little Mermaid
