Resort Advice Needed

[iwantpeace]

Hello! We have not been to Disney in many years and are looking at doing a spring break trip in April. I know it will be crowded, but with 2 kids in high school, it's the only time that's going to work for our family. I am shocked by how expensive the resorts are this time of year. My dilemma is that my teens (16 & 17) really do not want to share a bed. We wanted to do a family suite at Art of Animation, but it's over $600/night. I'm considering the following options and would love some input.
1. 2 connecting rooms at All Star Movies - Everyone would have their own bed and we would have 2 bathrooms. I'm a little hesitant because I know connecting rooms aren't guaranteed and I'm afraid this would take a little away from our family bonding time.
2. Family Suite at All Star Music - I definitely like the idea of 2 bathrooms, but I'm hearing rumors about possible renovations going on?
3. Cabin at Fort Wilderness - These look fun, but I think only have 1 bathroom.
4. Offsite - this is definitely the most affordable, but I worry about the fast pass situation. I think you can book sooner if you are staying onsite?

I would love to hear and advice from the experts. Like I said, it's been many years since we've been to Disney and I know things have changed a lot. Also, please let me know if there are better options that I have not considered. Thanks so much!

 

[Christine]

Hello! We have not been to Disney in many years and are looking at doing a spring break trip in April. I know it will be crowded, but with 2 kids in high school, it's the only time that's going to work for our family. I am shocked by how expensive the resorts are this time of year. My dilemma is that my teens (16 & 17) really do not want to share a bed. We wanted to do a family suite at Art of Animation, but it's over $600/night. I'm considering the following options and would love some input.
1. 2 connecting rooms at All Star Movies - Everyone would have their own bed and we would have 2 bathrooms. I'm a little hesitant because I know connecting rooms aren't guaranteed and I'm afraid this would take a little away from our family bonding time.
2. Family Suite at All Star Music - I definitely like the idea of 2 bathrooms, but I'm hearing rumors about possible renovations going on?
3. Cabin at Fort Wilderness - These look fun, but I think only have 1 bathroom.
4. Offsite - this is definitely the most affordable, but I worry about the fast pass situation. I think you can book sooner if you are staying onsite?

I would love to hear and advice from the experts. Like I said, it's been many years since we've been to Disney and I know things have changed a lot. Also, please let me know if there are better options that I have not considered. Thanks so much!

I'm liking the idea of two connecting rooms with 2 bathrooms, but you are correct, there is no guarantee that you will be given adjoining rooms; however, I do hear that Disney does make a priority to do that when the "kids" in the party are not adults.

Some of the suites that I looked at generally I stay away from. They usually only have one real bed and then everyone is left to sleep on some sort of sofa sleeper or chair sleeper. Uh, just no.

Try looking at a 2 bdrm at Saratoga Springs.

Another thing to think about is staying at one of the Disney partner hotels offsite that give you the 60 day fast pass and EMH access that all the onsite hotels give. I don't know off the top of my head what they are but it's easy enough to find out. Bonnet Creek is one, for instance.

Booking now onsite at Disney, you may be seeing rack rates. There could be some discounts offered as the time gets closer and you can rebook with the discount.

 

[Scubadaddy32]

There is always the option of Disney Springs hotels. The website says they offer Extra Magic Hours and FP+ with 60 day advanced booking. I'd call to double check, but they are a great deal IMO. I'm guessing the teenage boys could care less about a themed room. ha
https://disneyspringshotels.com/

 

[Little E]

DH and I are taking our two teens (DS 18 and DS 15) to WDW over spring break in 2020. It will be our last spring break together as a family before DS goes to college in the fall of 2020. We are in the same boat as we need three sleep surfaces (no one wants to sleep with DS 15...he's a blender!).

Like you, I was shocked at how expensive the onsite room costs are. I booked knowing the rack rates are crazy, and I'm SO hoping for discounts to be released. They typically are for the end of March/beginning of April timeframe, but I know there is absolutely NO guarantee, especially with SWGE in the mix. I feel your pain!

While I don't have any concrete advice to give you with all of your room choices, I will say that when we stayed in an AoA suite in 2015, we LOVED it! Having a separate master bedroom/bathroom, three comfortable sleep surfaces, a kitchenette, and a full sized table to gather around for breakfast every morning before hitting the parks was great. We also really enjoyed the food court and felt the bus service was really good. I don't know how comfortable you would be booking an AoA suite and hoping for a discount? I have no idea, historically, if AoA suites are typically discounted? It's all so confusing and it's tough to make choices. I wish you all the best in making these decisions.

Whatever you decide, I hope you have a magical vacation with your family!

 

[kaytieeldr]

Other options:
Value room + bring your own twin size air mattress
Moderate room with fifth sleeper (now a bookable category

 

[Scubadaddy32]

Moderate room with fifth sleeper (now a bookable category

Disney very accurately describes the pull down as a "Child Size" bed. ha

 

[Wild4Walt]

Another option would be to rent DVC points so you could get a 2 bedroom DVC. We've been looking into it for our trip in May and it's only slightly higher than the rack rate at the mods.

 

[SwanVT2]

Doubletree suites Disney springs is an affordable option.

 

[Harambe]

If you can wait at all (and I know with so much construction and new things happening planning is weird now), we found that once our kids were actually in college, it was easier to plan a trip during that winter break. The week after Christmas/New Year's was always cheaper, and since they were off, it didn't impact school at all. We've had hot weather, and cold weather, and the last trip had both!

I know once the college tuition hits, a trip to Disney sounds irresponsible - LOL! But we did one as our "last family trip" at that time, and it was fun. And the "kids" were ordering drinks!! we did OKW 2BR and with discounts, it was about the same as one room at some of the monorail resorts.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I'm in the same situation now. My kids are 19 and 13 (boy and girl) and won't sleep together in the same bed. And to be quite honest I don't want to share a room with them for a week. A night here or there is one thing but an entire week is too much for me. We did a week in DR last year and I got a family suite. Well the suite was very nice but not that big. With the way my kids throw clothes around, make messes, leaving their stuff everywhere and stay up chatting and giggling I was ready to murder someone. lol Never again!

With room prices it gets tricky for two rooms. I don't want to stay offsite because of FP+ and EMH. I like the Disney Springs hotels but I want more transportation options so the kids can do their own thing if they want. Renting points is an option but two bedroom villas can get pricey!

I would do two rooms at a value and I wouldn't even worry about the rooms being connected. They are old enough that you can at least request rooms in the same building and floor. That's my plan with my kids. I would actually prefer the rooms to not be connected because that'll mean they constantly ask me for everything. They get needy when I'm around. I actually want them a few rooms away because it will force them to be self sufficient.