Resort Choice

[trappie]

My family is getting ready for a trip to WDW and since my 17 y/o daughter is in a WC I thought I would ask for a little help. Which would be better to stay at All Star Sports or All Star Music as far as accessiblity, room size and transportation goes?

We are also considering Port Orleans - Riverside and Coronado Springs, but we are on a pretty tight budget and would only do so if they were considerably better than the two mentioned above.

Also, do they have accessible rooms with accessible bathrooms that have a tub instead of roll in shower?

Thanks in advance.

trappie

 

[Cheshire Figment]

I can't answer about accessible rooms. However:

All the "Value" Resorts the regular rooms are 260 sq ft with two double beds.

All the "Moderate" Resorts are 314 sq ft with two double beds, except Caribbean Beach where the rooms are 340 sq ft.

Also the moderates have "quiet" pools, as well as a main pool. Transportation tends to be better at the moderates (especially Caribbean) with multiple bus stops close to the rooms, while the values have one bus stop each.

 

[cupcake]

I have never stayed at the All Star resorts, but in general, WDW has accessible rooms with tubs (low tub with lots of grab bars and an otherwise accessible bathroom that can accommodate a wc w/ raised toilet). They also have the roll-in shower bathrooms.

I recently made reservations for an add-on stay after my dh's annual Fall conference trip. I asked for the tub rooms as I do not want to take up the shower room for someone who needs it. We had a long chat about hc rooms bc WDW was so full generally and we were having trouble finding one. The reservationist said that generally, they note your preference and if you request a roll-in shower you will get it, but tub people sometimes end up with roll-in showers. However, when they are near capacity, they look at specific rooms. Because there were virtually no hc rooms available, I was on hold forever (over 45 minutes total). They then told me that I had a roll-in shower room at Sarasota Springs on the 4th floor in an elevator building. I asked to be on a wait list for OKW and they called and we got in! I don't know if this helps or if info among reservationists might vary. I assume that if you speak with special needs and have a specific reason for needing the tub, they would accomodate. But who knows for sure? I recommend calling and speaking w/ special needs, not the regular reservations folks. I can tell you that we generally, but not always, get the rooms with the tubs, and I always specify that we want a tub.

Cupcake

 

[SueM in MN]

Here's the phone number for WDW Resort Special Reservations:
(407) 939-7807 [voice]
(407) 939-7670 [TTY]

 

[trappie]

Thanks for the info.

I was also wondering if anyone had made "room only" reservations along with room & ticket reservations at any of the WDW resorts? And if so did they make you check out of your room and then check back in? We were planning on getting into Orlando on Saturday, visit Sea World on Sunday then the Disney M-F. I would like to stay at the WDW resort the entire time, but not sure how much of a hassle it would be.

Thanks

 

[clkelley]

Some of your questions

All-Stars accessible rooms have 1 King Sized bed. Some of the rooms are roll-in showers, and some are tubs. They also come with refridgerators at no extra charge!

There is no difference between Movies and Music as far as the rooms or accessibility.

The folks at special services reservations are Wonderful!! They are the most knowledgeable and know how to meet your needs.

As far as multiple reservations, it is very easy. Yes, you have to check out and check back in, but make sure they "connect" your reservations, and 99% of the time you won't have to change rooms, it just involves going to the front desk to get new room keys.

I don't know how many are in your family, but as far as comfort, I would book an accessible room at All-Stars connecting to a standard room.

Except for just atmosphere, the moderates don't provide that much extra, in my opinion.

We had a two-doubles accesible room at Port Orleans French Quarter and because of the larger bathroom, the room felt crowded with the two double beds.

I hope I've helped.

Carol

 

[dj2]

if you're in an accessible room, i think the odds are even less likely that they'll make you change rooms. i think the special reservations people actually book a specific room for you. i also think that if you have 4 people wdw might comp you the connecting room, since you shouldn't be "penalized" for needing an accessible room and accessible rooms only sleep 2 whereas other rooms can sleep 4. we had 5 in a room at POR but since the accessible rooms don't have the trundle bed, they comped us a connecting room. didn't find out about this until we got there.

 

[trappie]

We went ahead and booked at All Star Music, I couldn't see paying extra for a moderate or deluxe resort when we plan on spending the majority of our time in the parks anyway. I didn't book the "room only" days, but no I am having second thoughts since the room only price was just 111.00 per day. I will be really disappointed if we get there and they have indeed comped us a connecting room and I didn't book those "room only days".

One more question, are Ultimate Park Hopper passes good for the entire day on the day of departure?

Thanks again for all your help

 

[clkelley]

Yes, the passes are good the entire day of departure until the last park closes that day or until you head to the airport or start driving home!

Carol

 

[pampam]

The differences between AS Sport and ASMusic in regards to accesability are very slight. I prefer AS Mu. because it is ramped down to the pool. I believe the transportation on the buses at AS Sport may be a little better, since they would pick up there first before going to pick up at AS Mu. So, you would have a better chance of getting on the buses with a wc. However, after saying that, I have never had a problem with the buses at AS Music. I believe the rooms are very very similar. No differences that I am aware of.

 

[trappie]

Again I would like to thank everyone for all the info.

Can anyone give me some tips on must see/do things at each of the parks? We have 5 days, but i think it might still be hard to do everything in only 5 days and i don't want to miss out anything spectacular.

Thanks

 

[SueM in MN]

Originally posted by trappie
Again I would like to thank everyone for all the info.

Can anyone give me some tips on must see/do things at each of the parks? We have 5 days, but i think it might still be hard to do everything in only 5 days and i don't want to miss out anything spectacular.

Thanks

A lot depends on if your daughter can transfer out of her wheelchair or not and what sorts of things your family is interested in.
In general, AK and the Studio are the most accessible because they were built most recently. If you go to the top of this board, there is a link in the disabilities FAQ that gives information about the rides/attractions from the official Disney site. It doesn't have a lot of info, but does tell which rides have cars where the person can remain in their wheelchair and which you need to transfer for.
Several things I would rate as "don't miss" include Fantasmic (a night show at the Studio), Illuminations (the fireworks night show at Epcot) and Mickey's Philharmagic (a 3 D + movie at MK). The Safari at AK is really good (and they have a wheelchair car). Buzz Lightyear in MK is fun and also has a wheelchair car.
The park we find most tiring is MK; because it's an older park, there are more rides where you need to make a transfer. Also, many of the rides are short, so it seems like you just get settled and it's time to get off.

 

[trappie]

Thanks for the info!

My daugher weighs about 130 and, while a bit difficult, given enough room it is possible for me to transfer her. Guess we will just have to make that call when we are there. I have printed the disability guide for each of the parks and that will help a little.