My family has a ho-hum impression of Boardwalk, so no need to apologize - everybody has their favorites (WL) and never-agains (CBR) based on personal preference!
Assuming you're not looking for a DVC property, Swan and Dolphin is an interesting and cost-conscious alternative to consider. We stayed there for a conference this past July. I'm not a big fan of the exterior, but the rooms have recently been updated in the past couple of years, and they were tastefully decorated and comfortable. A boat ride from the hotel to Epcot is available, and the bus service was not overly lengthy to other destinations. It's a "near-deluxe" resort for a low price, but as it is not operated by Disney, you don't get the perks of Disney's Magical Express or free-dining promotions (you still get Fastpass and other perks).
As an alternative, you may consider Wilderness Lodge (or Boulder Ridge). My family is never in a hurry at Disney (who needs the stress of rushing on vacation), and we like to stay at WL for the ambiance and multiple travel options. It's a nice way to start an early morning going to Epcot by taking a boat ride to MK, and then transferring over to the monorail. We wake up insanely early out of habit, and our 5 year old son enjoys the multi-modal transportation options getting to the park. Of course, we use the bus coming back late at night, which has always seemed fine at WL to us. Parts of WL are still under construction at the moment, but we were there last year and never heard a peep.
We thought CBR (another non DVC option) would be close to Epcot by bus, given the proximity as-the-crow-flies by aerial photo, but it might as well have been the moon... the buses back and forth took forever and are frequently jammed to the gills at peak times. Never again!
