Please help!!

[Gilmcel]

Hi,

This is all so confusing- I would love your help!
We are planning a trip for our famy of 4 with 2 adults and a 3.5 year old and 7.5 year old the first week of may 2016. I chose that time because I want to be there when it is the least crowded but I am flexible really any time after as well. This will be our first time.
Here is what I'm getting stuck with:

1. It seems that the poly is a great place to stay if you have little ones for the convienience - I can do it renting dvc points, but it's expensive and I'm not sure it's worth spending an extra 1000$. ???
2. I'm also looking at OKW with dvc points- it seems like a great price- I can even add 2 nights if I do that. A total of 10 days. For still much less than the Poly???
3. Or I have been looking at AKL - I'm sure my kids would love it- it's middle level priced with the other 2 I listed with dvc points.??
4. Or forget all of that and try to stay at POL riverside and get a package??
I am not sure how often we will come back to the resort. I don't know if my kids will want a break in between. They love pools and usually on vacation we have to drag them away from the pool- so I know that will be an issue.
Also I don't really care about the size of the rooms.
I want the "wow" factor for my kids.
I'm thinking this will be our only trip to disney also- but who knows until you do it!
Please all feedback and suggestions are welcome and appreciated!!
Thank you!

 

[Babsy]

I would stay at the Poly, if it is in the budget.

YES, IT IS WORTH IT!

You will love the convenience of the monorail or boat to the MK. Walk to the TTC to get the Epcot monorail. The resort should be finished renovations by then, so the resort will be all shiny and new.

The other resorts that you listed are also great, but not nearly as convenient as the Poly with two small children. Plus, EVERYONE LOVES the Poly ( or nearly everyone). I would request a ground floor room for the patio ( or third floor for the balcony) .

The kids will love the Poly pool and play area. You will love the lush landscaping and huge, comfortable rooms.

Enjoy!

 

[Lucius Best]

I wouldn't consider early May as the least crowded (that would be January or September), but judging from the reports of people who were there this year, crowds early May were pretty light.

With kids that age, it is definitely cool to be staying on the monorail for convenience coming/going to Magic Kingdom. I used to recommend Wilderness Lodge as a less expensive option to the Polynesian, but still fairly close to MK. But WL is going to be undergoing construction that may or may not be a problem.

I don't know about OKW, but have stayed at both AKL and POR. AKL is a great resort, good restaurants, nice to see the animals. But it's furthest away from MK. POR is our favorite moderate resort, nice atmosphere, nice central pool, very good food court. By bus it does not take that long at all to get to MK/Epcot/HS.

For me personally, an extra $1000 is pretty steep to stay at a monorail resort, especially when there are lots of other nice places to stay and you could stay a few extra nights. It will be warm (80s), and with young kids, pool breaks might be good. I would lean towards staying at a cheaper place and staying more nights, with more park days. With extra park days, there's no pressure to see everything in one day. Go to parks early when lines are short, then flexibility to take a pool break in afternoon, then dinner and/or back to the parks for a few hours.

 

[baler31]

Hi,

This is all so confusing- I would love your help!
We are planning a trip for our famy of 4 with 2 adults and a 3.5 year old and 7.5 year old the first week of may 2016. I chose that time because I want to be there when it is the least crowded but I am flexible really any time after as well. This will be our first time.
Here is what I'm getting stuck with:

1. It seems that the poly is a great place to stay if you have little ones for the convienience - I can do it renting dvc points, but it's expensive and I'm not sure it's worth spending an extra 1000$. ???
2. I'm also looking at OKW with dvc points- it seems like a great price- I can even add 2 nights if I do that. A total of 10 days. For still much less than the Poly???
3. Or I have been looking at AKL - I'm sure my kids would love it- it's middle level priced with the other 2 I listed with dvc points.??
4. Or forget all of that and try to stay at POL riverside and get a package??
I am not sure how often we will come back to the resort. I don't know if my kids will want a break in between. They love pools and usually on vacation we have to drag them away from the pool- so I know that will be an issue.
Also I don't really care about the size of the rooms.
I want the "wow" factor for my kids.
I'm thinking this will be our only trip to disney also- but who knows until you do it!
Please all feedback and suggestions are welcome and appreciated!!
Thank you!

1. The time that we save with the advantage of being close to MK is more than worth the cost IMO. Personally, we prefer CR for the walk to MK or GF as it is simply our favorite resort. Being able to be back in your room in 10 minutes is huge. You can come and go for breaks/naps very easily.
2. Personally, we would never stay there. Simply because you will have to drive or use the bus system to get to every park.
3. Beautiful resort, love the viewing areas and dining. Again, we don't care to stay here for a week long vacation as it is too far from the parks.
4. Bus service again. Folding strollers, having to stand when no seats etc.

All the deluxe pools are very nice. The GF and I believe the Poly recently opened kids splash play areas in addition to the other pools.

There should be some type of discount that time of year. It really is a personal pref. you are paying for location and room size/amenities to a degree. I have never stayed at a resort with outdoor entrances like the moderates so that influences my decision as well. WE also like the resort feel of the deluxes. We use the gym every day, room service, better dining etc. We have stayed at all of the deluxes and GF is our favorite. When our children were younger we used CR a LOT for the walk to MK.

I would pick a few resorts and look at the individual threads here. The first page of the thread contains a lot of info about the resort. HTH

 

[Wood Nymph]

1. I don't think the Poly is worth an extra $1,000, especially for first timers, but then, others will disagree.
2. OKW is a very nice resort and a great value. It also has nice pools. If you were thinking about getting a villa then I'd say this is a good choice. But if you are looking at a studio then I would choose another resort. OKW lacks good counter service options which is fine with the full kitchen of a villa, but less desirable with a studio.
3. AKL is very nice, but if you are willing to go with a resort like that then would you be willing to consider the Wilderness Lodge, which is usually the same price as AKL. The WL is just a five minute bus ride or a 12 minute boat ride from the MK and has two really nice pools and a great children's splash pad.
4. POR would be nice, too.

If you want a wow factor for the kids have you looked at the family suites at Art of Animation? They are about the same price as a moderate but give you lots of room.

 

[buzznina]

Worth is different for everybody, only your family can decide that. When we first had our DD, we stayed at POLY for the convenience and had a great time. But, after more trips to other resorts we realized we had just as great of a time and saved $$. We still stay at the deluxes once in a while because we want to stay there and even now its harder to convince ourselves to spend the extra $$. A great compromise would be AKL or WL, we also really like the Port Orlean resorts. Foe us we would decide to save $$ and stay longer, again JMO.

 

[mom2AidanAndEli]

I just have to throw this out there. With kids that young, if you're looking for WOW factor, it's probably more in the Value Resorts!!! Most little kids, when you say Disney, are going to think of things like the huge icons at Pop, Movies, or AoA. That's probably going to be more wow to them than the lushness of Wilderness Lodge, for example.

And, truly think about how much time you're going to be at the resorts. On a first, maybe only (although probably not!) trip, aren't you going to be in the parks most of the time? Our first few trips were at Pop, Movies, and Sports and we had fun at them all. At 5 and 7 my kids loved those places! And, for us, the resort was (and really still is!) a place to sleep, shower, dress, and go.

Besides, if you cut the budget back on your first trip you can save money to put towards your next!

 

[boundfordisney]

yes I agree with the pp aoa seems well suited as far as kids wow factor my daughter has stayed there with my grandchildren whom are 5 and 6 they loved it and also love pool time. they had a suite in the nemo section. I have stayed at okw in a 1 bedroom as well as a 2 bedroom the 1 bedroom is huge, also have stayed many times at cbr pool there is awesome lots of quiet pools and also great food court you should check it out, my choice would be either aoa or cbr

 

[Hisgirl]

We LOVED fort wilderness, Grand Floridian and Animal Kingdom the best. Fort wilderness with a golf cart is just too much fun! Tons to do. Animal kingdom is like being in a totally different world. Lots to see and do there. I would avoid the values if you can help it. As far as Poly....we've eaten there and visited and kept trying to make ourselves love it and we just couldn't. It was dark and felt old and nothing like the other nice resorts. Late April and early May are good times to go. It can be pretty hot then. We love the flower and garden festivals and your kids might enjoy seeing all the cool characters in plant form.

 

[Gilmcel]

Thank you! Please keep them coming.
OKW would be a studio for a great price where I could stay 10 days. Or the others 7 days. Is more time worth less ease?
This is such a hard trip to plan!

 

[JennyDrake]

I'm going to jump on the values bandwagon! Huge icons, bold colors and kids love it (as do I!). The food courts have numerous options all day long and the gift shops are fun. _I_ would not consider it worth the money for the Poly. Pop is centrally located and is a short bus ride to any park.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Thank you! Please keep them coming.
OKW would be a studio for a great price where I could stay 10 days. Or the others 7 days. Is more time worth less ease?
This is such a hard trip to plan!

A studio at OKW is huge, a bigger room than you would get at a value, moderate or a studio at any of the other DVC resorts. The bus makes multiple stops within the resort, so it would be similar to the bus at a moderate resort. I really liked OKW when we stayed there in February, but we had a 2br villa. We got a fantastic price on it, much less than we would have paid for three rooms at a value.

 

[clapton]

I have stayed at all the resorts except for OKW, but with young kids the monorail hotels or WL are definitely worth the convenience IMO. Personally I would go with one of those especially if you won't be coming back for a while. The Poly looks amazing after the refurb and the new studios are beautiful. Have a great trip whatever you decide!!

 

[Ceryssa]

I wouldn't pay to stay on the monorail unless I had a very young kid that was in a stroller full-time. The exception *might* be GF. If AKL is in the budget, I'd look at WL instead--still somewhat middle-level pricing, but has the boat option to MK and CR, which would give you monorail access. With kids that age, and it being your first trip, you're likely going to spend a majority of your time in MK, so I'd go for the convenience of WL.

 

[baler31]

Thank you! Please keep them coming.
OKW would be a studio for a great price where I could stay 10 days. Or the others 7 days. Is more time worth less ease?
This is such a hard trip to plan!

For us time is money and we truly feel our time is not wisely spent waiting on a bus to arrive and the stress that goes along with it for young children. Many people do it and I am sure they have wonderful vacations. However, we just value the time gained too much.

I think you need to decide what type of vacation you want, a DVC property or any condo type property is a different experience than a traditional resort. A lot of people value the additional space over other conveniences. Just remember other expenses also come with extending your trip as well.

If I was going to stay in a condo type property that is not within walking distance to a park I would also look at Wyndham Bonnet Creek condos, they will be far less expensive than DVC units. We have stayed in a 2br presidential unit for $150 a night and that included taxes. It is a great property with fabulous pools right on Disney grounds. However, I don't care for the condo experience so we don't do it regularly. A 1br would most likely be 100 or less.

 

[Cee]

AKL will give you the WOW. And there are animals!

 

[wdw4rfam]

I just have to throw this out there. With kids that young, if you're looking for WOW factor, it's probably more in the Value Resorts!!! Most little kids, when you say Disney, are going to think of things like the huge icons at Pop, Movies, or AoA. That's probably going to be more wow to them than the lushness of Wilderness Lodge, for example.

And, truly think about how much time you're going to be at the resorts. On a first, maybe only (although probably not!) trip, aren't you going to be in the parks most of the time? Our first few trips were at Pop, Movies, and Sports and we had fun at them all. At 5 and 7 my kids loved those places! And, for us, the resort was (and really still is!) a place to sleep, shower, dress, and go.

Besides, if you cut the budget back on your first trip you can save money to put towards your next!

Agree here. Wow factor for the kids...I'd go AOA!! Wow factor for YOU.....yes, poly.

 

[ariane37]

Our kids were 11 months and 4 when we started going as a family. Never stayed at a monorail resort and we never found it difficult. We do prefer the deluxes, but I agree if you want the "wow" factor for your kids maybe look at the values, at least AoA. We stayed there last year for a few nights b/c I needed to try a LM room , boys were 8 & almost 12. They LOVED the theming of the whole resort (which is incredible) and a few years ago when we visited friends staying at ASSports they thought the theming there was awesome. I wouldn't suggest value if you knew you'd spend lots of time in your room or at your resort, but if you aren't set on breaks my guess is you'll spend the majority of your time in the parks-especially being your first trip . The only other thing I can see as maybe a downside is no slides at the value pools, but that isn't necessarily a negative.
We enjoyed OKW when we stayed there in a 2 bdr. villa. I don't see it as a negative that you need to bus to all the parks. Wherever you decide, have a great trip

 

[Nancyg56]

I would choose wht you would like for yourselves at this point. YOur kids are going to love whatever you decide woks for you. With that said, the Poly is an awesome resort and is my family's favorite resort. Access to the MK and Epcot is convenient, and easy with children, and the view cannot be beat.

We also loved AKL, It is beautiful, has so much to do and see (you need to commit to using this resort as part of your vacation if you stay here, it is lovely) and even though some people feel it is distanced from most parks, we found the bus service to be very good.

POR is a fantastic moderate option for families and the pool is a draw for kids. As far as moderates go, my family prefers POFQ but it seldom offers discounts, but we always visit POR. There is a full service TS restaurant on site that is a convenient perk. We generally choose it on arrival night. The boat will take you to POFQ if you want to visit this pretty resort, as well as to DTD, so you have a lot of dining and shopping choices just a boatride away.

Whatever you choose, make sure that you do not spend so much on a "dream" resort that you have to compromise your other choices, because the moderates really are so much fun! My DH insisted we book the Grand this next trip because we are taking my friend and her two little girls. Now I am never one to turn my nose up at a Deluxe, but we need two rooms and it just now occured to him that this is pretty darn expensive. "I told you so" is not really helpful but it did not stop me from saying it. He is not joining us so all I can do is take a lot of pictures of those two little Princesses dancing around the Ballroom (Lobby) and swimming in the pool, because while we do not have buyers remorse, we do feel a little pressure and I don't like that feeling.

 

[maryandtyson]

WOW factor = Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom Lodge. Stayed at both several times. Never really found AKL location to be an issue.

We took our girls to WL when they were about that age and their jaws dropped in the lobby! My DD13 has been asking to go back to AKL because she loves it there. I think both have a WOW.

We stay Deluxe usually, but tried POR Royal room for one night when we added on to our stay. Found the rooms very crowded. Can't imagine a stroller in there. Compared to Deluxe rooms, it was a big difference.

All the resorts have so much to recommend them, it really comes down to personal preference. What matters most. They are all good choices.