Seriously,how do you pick a resort hotel when going to WDW?

[Disneyland1084]

I have an off site hotel booked for my first trip to WDW next summer, it's located in Disney Springs right by all the shops, etc.. However, if my SIL backs out of the trip, I'm probably just going to go ahead and book at one of the values, maybe a moderate. A deluxe? I'd love to, but a slim to no chance I would do that. I love some of the moderates, but every time I look at them I keep thinking how my girls would be happy at a value. They're still young, and I don't think they'd really care about the extra perks the "nicer" hotels have. So this brings me to my question. With the overwhelming amount of Disney resorts, all levels, how do you chose which one to stay at? I keep thinking how beautiful Port Orleans French Quarter is, but then I think how Caribbean Beach seems pretty cool, then I think of All Star Sports, etc... It's overwhelming trying to decide when there's so many great ones.

 

[rwdavis2]

First off, how much do you want to spend. Second, will you really spend much time there other than sleeping? We generally don't spend a lot of time at the resort but given that we usually stay deluxe. Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge so far. Boardwalk Villas next month. If I was taking kids and could afford it I would go Animal Kingdom Lodge.

 

[sharadoc]

We look at photos, size of rooms, pools, plus time of year when we are going. We like to spend time at the resort too, so the amenities are important.

Do you want to eat snacks, sandwiches, cereal, microwave items in the room? Then you'll need a DVC studio or a family suite minimally.
Do you need a pool slide? That's moderate level and above.
What are the sleeping arrangements? Values have double beds, mods and up have queens.
How many people, will you be comfortable with two beds, one bathroom or do you need to spread out more?

Those are some of the basic questions I would recommend to ask yourself.

 

[Jaime4004]

I go with cost and how many people are going. When we're all there, it's a family of 5 so there's only a few choices to begin with. Went with DH and I and stayed at CSR because we got a good deal. But when it was just DD and I, we stayed at pop. Don't need a lot of space for 2. All the resorts are nice to me, and I'm not sure i'd ever spend the extra $$ on a deluxe.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

Price
How nice is the pool
Queen beds

 

[spiceycat]

your budget - never go over your budget for any vacation trip.

loved Pop century- it is a fun place - here are some pictures
http://photopost.wdwinfo.com/g928-disney-27s-pop-century-resort.html

really think it is a great resort for a value price.

for moderate would still go with PO (either RS or FQ - up to you)

for deluxe - think it would depend upon which of the WDW parks you are spending most of your time.
MK - BLT, CR, Poly (don't like gf- but that is just me) - WL
Epcot - BC, Yc, BWV or one of the MK resorts - monorail access
Studios same as Epcot (but not the MK resorts)
AK - well the AKL is closer - but since everything is bus transportation here - would also consider WL, SSR and OKW - which one can you get for a better bargin

 

[wulfgeat]

Our first trip we stayed at All Star Music - DW and me. Since then we have stayed at POR. We could afford a moderate, but not a deluxe. Now, we travel with 4 people, DD4 and DMIL. We spent one night at All Star Music with all 4 and it was too tight. Also, the moderates had queen beds - a big deal. If we had to stay Value or stay at home, we could do a Value. We like the larger rooms, queen beds, and theming of the Moderates more, though.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Budget first, then must-haves, then nice-to-haves.

For us, a must-have is "3 sleep surfaces." Otherwise, I have to sleep with the human blender. NOPE.

 

[Elleshoodat]

I have an off site hotel booked for my first trip to WDW next summer, it's located in Disney Springs right by all the shops, etc.. However, if my SIL backs out of the trip, I'm probably just going to go ahead and book at one of the values, maybe a moderate. A deluxe? I'd love to, but a slim to no chance I would do that. I love some of the moderates, but every time I look at them I keep thinking how my girls would be happy at a value. They're still young, and I don't think they'd really care about the extra perks the "nicer" hotels have. So this brings me to my question. With the overwhelming amount of Disney resorts, all levels, how do you chose which one to stay at? I keep thinking how beautiful Port Orleans French Quarter is, but then I think how Caribbean Beach seems pretty cool, then I think of All Star Sports, etc... It's overwhelming trying to decide when there's so many great ones.

Our non-negotiable is queen beds (at least -- when it's just my husband and I, we prefer a king), so that automatically excludes the value resorts. The next step is to look at our budget. If we can swing it, we stay deluxe; if not, the moderate resorts suit us just fine.

We've gone enough times that we have our favorites -- Animal Kingdom Lodge because we love animals, Port Orleans French Quarter because of its small size -- but sometimes we venture out of our comfort zone. In those cases, we take a look at things like theming, amenities and size.

Start with what's important to you, then move on to what looks interesting or exciting to you. There really is something for everyone.

 

[Doug S]

I have done only one value, Pop Century, and that was a very short 3 night trip. I was at the parks until midnight or later every night and was up the next morning for rope drop. It was a bed in WDW and I still got the transportation perks. Wouldn't ever consider doing a value for a longer trip though. It just lacked the relaxing atmosphere I want after a long day in the parks.

I'm a big fan of the moderates, as they're still fairly budget friendly and are much nicer than the values. They are also more adult-friendly, as all but Caribbean Beach have indoor bars. Be forewarned that all but French Quarter are humongous and you could end up having to make quite a hike to get to the food court or pool with slide.

 

[lancgirl]

We made the decision to stay GF or Poly when our kids were younger bc of the ease with the monorail in addition to the upgraded amenities. It truly makes life easier. I know people joke about the ridiculous prices people will pay to stay there but seriously, in my opinion, nothing compares to minimal bus use and a fast trip back to the hotel from MK or EP. However now nobody in our family wants to stay anywhere else, though I try my hardest to convince them to step out of the monorail box. LOL! I would also say Queen beds are a must for us.

 

[mjallemand]

I go for the cheapest available. Generally a room at Walt Disney World is a place for me to sleep and shower and little else; no sense in paying any more than I have to for it.

Don't get me wrong, if I won the lotto I'd be staying at the Polynesian no question...but I'd also be taking two-week long WDW trips too, so it's all kinda moot.

 

[Pats Dragon]

We have stayed nearly everywhere but our fav is Pop. We like to stay on a budget, love the food court and gift shop, the lake is pretty, transportation is the best. Your girls might like animation but we found the walk from Mermaid very long. I would love to stay in cars but can't talk my kids into the long walk again. I think all values are fun for kids. No reason at all not to stay there.

 

[VAfamily1998]

For me I think of
1-Budget
2-who is going with me
3-why we are going (I run a lot of the Disney races, and sometimes I might choose a different hotel for a "race-cation" than for a regular vacation
4-Have I stayed there before?

I had a little "goal" to stay at each resort at least once before staying any one resort a second time. I was doing well until I reserved for the upcoming trip (for Marathon weekend 2017)
Some of the hotels that I haven't stayed at yet were already fully booked...and because I am running the marathon and my husband isn't, I wanted to book a hotel where he would have easy access to cheer me on. So I booked BWI, even though I have already stayed there once. So even though it doesn't satisfy my #4--it satisfies the other 3 determining factors well.

 

[ChasingLeslie]

Budget first, then the amenities/features that are most important to me/us

I prefer the moderate resorts. We choose to keep returning to CSR based on price, central location, quiet rooms, and upgraded mattresses (among other things).

 

[TLM2015]

Mostly budget. My next trip we are doing a deluxe, but only for one night and renting points, but I was going to try to save money by doing a split between Pop and CBR. Too much hopping and now I'm thinking of downgrading to a value since we won't spend too much time in the room. My DD likes the larger than life values, and so do I, and I like the price but I'm not sure if the space will be enough. That said I haven't done a moderate although I have done FW cabins but that was because of the amount of people on that trip.

 

[MimiOfTwo]

Convenience/atmosphere. My favorite mod is POFQ but lately my trips have been GF,Poly and most recently Beach Club. Beach Club was an adult trip with more time at Epcot than MK. Next month I'm taking the grandkids so Poly it is.

 

[maxiesmom]

First I figure out my budget. Then I try and decide how much time I will spend at the resort vs being in the parks. And how important the food court/restaurant will be. I've been going with CSR quite often, because I like the food court, love the locations of the bus depots at the parks, and like how the resort if fairly central to all of the parks. Plus, when I go with my nephew having the door between the sleeping area and the sink area is very handy.

I have been tempted to write a bunch of resorts down, thrown them in a bowl, and pull one out and stay there. Haven't done it yet.

 

[My2Qtz0205]

1. Budget
2. Availability of bunk beds or separate beds for my kids (boy/girl, and DH does not want them in the same bed), or affordability of connecting rooms (see #1)
3. Length of trip--for our 4 day land-and-sea trip we wanted convenience to MK, so we stayed at Wilderness Lodge
4. Attractiveness

 

[jeepwreck]

Our home resort is POFQ we have stayed many times there.

For us we usually stick with moderate resorts is the best of both worlds. The resorts are all very well themed and are priced great. We have been to many other resorts just to look around but for us it kinda comes down to price and since we are mainly only at the resort to sleep that’s why we stick to the moderate. They are less busy then the value and the rooms are always nice.