Port Orleans v. Wilderness Lodge v. Animal Kingdom

[GeorgiaHoo]

Booking a trip for 4 adults as a surprise and trying to decide between these three resorts. We stayed at Port Orleans many years ago but for our trips over the last decade or so we've always stayed at Yacht Club. I can't justify the rack rate cost for Yacht Club this coming March ($2k more than Wilderness Lodge/Animal Kingdom) so thinking about these three options. Never stayed at Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom. We primarily liked Yacht Club for the pool and being able to walk to Epcot and DHS. I know that we'll be taking Disney transportation/Uber staying at any of these and I understand the rooms will be somewhat bigger at the two deluxe resorts. I welcome any thoughts/recommendations on these, especially wondering what about the differences between the pools and how happy/unhappy people were with transportation.

Thanks!

 

[The_Banking_Scot]

At Animal Kingdom you have the animals on the savannah but will need uber or Disney Buses. At Wilderness lodge you can take a boat to MK ( pre covid you could also take a boat to the Contemporary and walk) and bus elsewhere. I loved the WL landscaping and interior design of the lobby. Never had a long wait for the buses ( beyond the scheduled gap) (but am used to waiting for public transportation in the UK) . Loved the pools. Whilst the animals at AKL were magnificent ( but they can wander further out of sight)
Also at WL I saw the Electrical Water Pageant and from some places you could see the fireworks from the MK.

 

[Marthasor]

That's a tough one. I think WL has a slight edge as it offers the boat to MK, two QS options, a decent TS that isn't terribly difficult to get ADRs for and a gorgeous lobby. The pool is a bit lacking, however. AKL is a close second, but if you would like to save some money, the PO resorts are great. I find the bus transportation from all of these resorts to be a bit challenging, so I would probably base the decision on other factors.

 

[RoseGold]

I love staying on the savanna, and I love the AKL pools, but my vote is for Port Orleans. It's the cheapest by a lot, and it's less remote than AKL.

The animals go to bed pretty early, so if you're a park warrior, you might not even get to see the animals. WL is not my jam, I kind of already live in WL decor. Some people find it charming, and the pools are supposed to be nice. None of these have great transportation, maybe a slight edge to WL if you are MK focused.

Might I suggest Caribbean Beach? Excellent pool, really cool QS and skyliner access to two parks, and probably cheaper than all of these options.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

I love staying on the savanna, and I love the AKL pools, but my vote is for Port Orleans. It's the cheapest by a lot, and it's less remote than AKL.

The animals go to bed pretty early, so if you're a park warrior, you might not even get to see the animals. WL is not my jam, I kind of already live in WL decor. Some people find it charming, and the pools are supposed to be nice. None of these have great transportation, maybe a slight edge to WL if you are MK focused.

Might I suggest Caribbean Beach? Excellent pool, really cool QS and skyliner access to two parks, and probably cheaper than all of these options.

Yeah, I was thinking about Caribbean Beach. Caribbean Beach is actually about $200 more than Port Orleans, though both are about $4k (of course that doesn't include food (massive cost) or travel), AKL and WL are about $5k, and Yacht Club is $7k. I think I'm torn on the room size--anyone have recent experience with 4 adults in a moderate? My recollection of Port Orleans is that could be tight. Ultimately I wonder if the additional $1k between Port Orleans and WL/AKL is better spent on food and other stuff (lightning lanes?).

 

[RoseGold]

It's four adults in a hotel room. There isn't one that isn't going to be tight. Disney's deluxe isn't that deluxe. You can get the 5th sleeper CB (and Port Orleans I think?), with the murphy bed, if that helps your configuration.

Unless you plan on sitting on the balcony watching the animals, it would be hard for me to justify an extra $1K for worse transportation and dining options.

 

[AquaDame]

If avoiding the bus is most important to you, I'd seriously consider Caribbean Beach since you can hit both from the skyliner at least. I agree with PP who said you're going to feel tight with four adults in one room no matter what... it IS slightly better in a deluxe, but not by much.

We didn't particularly like the rooms at WL and we love animals, so we chose to stay at AKL for our next trip and get a rental car. Yes, we're "those" people who don't mind driving on vacation since it gives us so much more freedom, and so we don't have to stand up on the ride back to the hotel at the end of the night.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

And we can add an extra day staying at a moderate and still pay less than if we stay at WL or AKL.

 

[cjsmom5]

Four adults at any of the moderates ... and even WL and AKL will be tight. Even tighter at PO resorts or CBR. If you are accustom to YC then the rooms will be small. AKL is along ways out. Love the serenity but if parks are your thing this might not be the best choice. WL is nice is you like the decor. More transportation options with the boat. Great location for MK. Carribean Beach is a large resort and depending where you are ... room location can present challenges. Rooms still have carpet instead of vinyl. I prefer the vinyl. Rooms compared to YC are much smaller. We like Rooms at CR Destino Tower. Bigger than moderates and less expensive than YC but when I checked last they were sold out for many dates in March.

 

[brewhome]

Have you thought about renting DVC points? In two weeks we have two adult couples going for five nights, in two savannah view suites at AKL Kidani for the first three and two suites at SSR (standard) for the last two, and we are paying $3000 total for the two rooms. Lots cheaper and you each get your own room, if there is availability and renters. I’ve rented three times now through a reputable company and it works out fabulously.

 

[Beachmom0317]

Have you priced AoA Family Suites? You get skyliner access there. Otherwise I would just do POR or CBR. I thought I had read somewhere that the rooms at WL and AKL are amongst the smallest of the deluxe resorts. Since ALK and WL will still require busses/uber I would take the savings and just stay in a moderate. CBR and AoA have skyliner access (though I am not sure how much the family suites will be, they can sometimes be up there) and POR has the boat transportation to Disney Springs.

 

[DeeBee3]

Just as an aside, the WL rooms were just renovated. Not sure if anyone has stayed in them since then. I have not. I do love it there and we all love the boat to MK - ability to chill at Geyser Point and see the water pageant float by as well as possibility to see fireworks from the dock.

There are 2 pools although nothing as spectacular as Stormalong Bay. I'd say dining is pretty good at WL. The location to Epcot and HS are superior over in that Boardwalk area though.

As for AKL - just stayed at Kidani in August. Was very impressed. Rooms were nice and we loved the resort itself. However, like people said, if you are in the parks all day, you won't be able to enjoy that piece. Otherwise the place is beautiful and you could just chill there all day and be happy.

I guess it depends on what type of vacation you have planned.

 

[eandt]

As long as you are certain of your plans I would consider renting DVC points. We did twice (now we are owners ourselves so be careful ) through a private owner and the experience was great. Did get us hooked on the deluxe properties although we do love POFQ if we ever go back to a moderate. The last time we stayed at PO the buses were shared between FQ side and Riverside so depending on where is picked up first it can be a hassle.

 

[a1tinkfans]

I’ve stayed all three.
Agree 4 adults is tight in any mod, a deluxe is honestly not that much better regarding room size.
but imho the best mod would be POR, Preferred ( the only way we stay there) it’s a very large resort and preferred gets you near south depot, u can request 14/18 and hope that works. Close to bus , food, both bars( in and out) food court, restaurant. Beautiful resort and with the boat to DS and pofq, that’s also a nice perk

if I were to choose one of the Deluxes it’s be AKL, it’s just beautiful, quieter, great bar and restaurants. Also a night Safari ( if it’s open, and worth the price, night vision goggles and we greatly enjoyed it) it is further but the buses were no issue and
It truly is a lovely place, nice pool and more adult feeling than mod choice imho.
as far as WL, we liked it but it’d be our last choice of the ones you chose. Pool is nice but we often return to AKL/Savannah.
wherever you choose, safe travels and enjoy.

 

[BillFromCT]

If I could throw in another moderate resort suggestion. Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs. The tower rooms are bigger (375 sq. feet) than CBR/POR (314 sq. feet) or WL/AKL (344 sq. feet). I've stayed in CBR/POR/AKL and the newly refurbed WL rooms. The GDT rooms are nicer than all of them. The GDT price should be less than both WL and AKL. The main pool at CSR is one of the biggest, with the largest hot tub on property (I think it fits 21 people). Also, from a pool perspective, CSR tends to have a lot less children, since it's a "convention" hotel. I will cede the point about the hit or miss CSR transportation, since it's all buses. I've never experienced an issue the 4 times we've stayed there, while others complain it's the worst. YMMV, as they say. Also, the lounges and restaurants at CSR are better than what you'll find at either CBR or POR.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Just as an aside, the WL rooms were just renovated. Not sure if anyone has stayed in them since then. I have not. I do love it there and we all love the boat to MK - ability to chill at Geyser Point and see the water pageant float by as well as possibility to see fireworks from the dock.

We have stayed in a newly remodeled room at the WL and it is very nice. We love the boat to MK, Geyser Point, the villas pool and being able watch the Electric Water Pageant and the fireworks from the resort. The buses are pretty good, too.

 

[RoseGold]

I agree AoA suite might be worth looking into. It has an extra bathroom, which could be a game-changer. Sure, maybe your group of adults isn't thrilled with over the top Cars theming, but you are adults at Disney.

 

[Wishuponastar0412]

I'm not sure if it is because my last stay was in a SSR 2 bedroom, but Port Orleans room felt small with 3 adults last week. Overall it seemed that transportation was a bit slow at French Quarter. We had to wait a while for buses and never knew if it was going to stop at Riverside as well. We ended up taking Uber multiple times because the times kept getting pushed back. We saw 3 MK buses, 2 DS, 2 AK, and an Epcot before our HS bus showed up about 35 minutes later. The transportation was much quicker at SSR- we only ever waited 20 min at park opening for a bus. Typically our wait was 5 min or less.

We own our DVC at AKL & love it. However, my husband's favorite park is AK and we don't tend to do much (if any) MK time. You really need to have some time at the hotel to enjoy it. We felt it wasn't as far as everyone said and to be able to wake up & have coffee with the animals is unreal. I don't remember having any transportation issues. Just that our room at Kidani was a long walk from the lobby. We're staying Jambo in January and hope that is better.
We also love Wilderness Lodge. I could spend hours just curled up in that lobby with a good book. Transportation was great here- I don't remember ever having to wait more than 10 minutes for a bus. As others have mentioned, you do have the boat to MK which is a nice option if you are going there!

You get a lot more food options at a deluxe vs moderate. We really wished there had been somewhere to sit down for dinner as we got tired of the same food court options.

As others have mentioned, I would look into renting DVC points. We just added on because I always need more points. From the forums here, were able to book OWK for only a little bit more than our All Stars room for this spring.