Should we downgrade- opinions wanted!

[DreamBeliever]

I don't know if I missed it ... but ... what are the dates of your September vacation? If you're looking to save money, there are dates available in August and September for the Free Dining Package if you purchase the Magic Your Way package (tickets & lodging). If you're able to take advantage of the free dining you'll save a tremendous amount of money and can more easily justify the Poly.

As much as I like the Poly, I favor the Wildnerness Lodge. The WL also allows you to stay in the Magic Kingdom area, enjoy a relaxing environment, nice restaurant selection, bunkbeds for the kids and the cost is less than the Poly.

Can you really go wrong with any resort? It's Disney!

 

[minnie61650]

I'm a small person, 5' with my shoes. I stayed with DD6 at ASMO in Sept. We had an awesome trip but I would not recommend value resorts to your group. I felt like I could not close the door when I was in the bathroom, not enough space!

The themeing is great but the rooms just are not comfortable to me size wise. I've stayed at Coronado and while many say their is not much size difference I never felt cramped in the room at Coronado. It is one of my favorites!

I did stay at GF once and would not spend the money again, just me.

Enjoy your trip!

FYI

The bathrooms at the mods and the values are the same layout:

There is not much room size difference between a mod and a value.

Here is the layout of a mod.
The bathroom is about the same size as the All Stars but you will have 2 sinks instead of one.

POR room lay out

here is the All Star room layout'

All Star room layout

The mod has 54 square feet more than the value.
That means if both the mod and the value room were 27 feet long than the mod would be 2 feet wider. Just enough room for a double sink instead of a single.

To me that is not a lot of room size difference.

 

[bigmoonmullen]

Hi:

I think everyone here is offering you some great advice.

A lot of this depends on what your trips plans are.

Are you planning on staying all day at the park?
Do you plan on spending more time at a specific park?
Does anyone have problems getting around?
Will anyone want to stay back at the resort during any of the days?
How much of the day will you spend in the park?
Will the group need naps?
Are you park hoping or staying at one park for the day?

We have stayed at Pop and BC... This winter we will be staying at WL, group of 10 with four rooms. My preference was POP, to save a lot of money... the group chose WL... Since it's in early December I did not object due to the decorations... but those decorations are costing me a bunch. Basically, we hit the park and spend very little time in the rooms... Thus I'm spending a lot to sleep in a room... We did have quick bus service at Pop.

If some of your group plans on spending quite a bit of time at the resort (reading, people watching, viewing fireworks from the resort) then the Poly or one of the other deluxes around MK might be your answer. I'm not sure I would enjoy sitting around a Value resort all day... maybe 1/2 day around the pool.

Get the group together and try to get a feel on what people want to do.

Have a Great Trip,

Mark

 

[Tara8595]

Unless you're spending a good majority of your time at MK, then I'd visit the Poly to get a taste of it, but stay at the Pop. I used to go Deluxes all the way, but I am a value convert. I LOVE Pop Century. The theming, the food court is fantastic. Even with a standard, if you stay in 50s, 60s or 70s (all have some standard rooms), the walks are very convenient. If you have your own transportation, it takes very little time to get anywhere on property.

I've just gotten to a point where it's hard to justify spending all that extra money when Pop is so much fun anyhow and has the food court. I mean, add up the total amount you'd save by staying at Pop and think of all the other things you could use that money for - like a segway tour, or taking the whole crew to Hoop-Dee-Do or a Luau.

Stay at the Pop. Visit the deluxes and take advantage of the restaurants and check out the gift shops - that should feed the need to get a taste of those environments.

 

[eliza61]

How many people are going to be in the room? My family consist of 3 boys (dh included in that number ) and all are over 6 ft. Do not under any circumstances drop down to a value with large people. The rooms are way too small. We tried all-stars once and after 2 days moved up to the first deluxe with a room, we didn't care where! We were forever bumping into one another, like a live version of the pinball machine and tripping over the luggage. Plus the bathroom and beds were just way too small.

 

[cgmac12]

Ok- I will try and answer all the questions so everyone can get a better idea of our group dynamics. We are going Sept. 15-22. Here is our current room breakdown:
#1: My mom and dad
#2: My sister and brother in law
#3: My Grandmother
#4: My aunt, uncle, their two boys ages 15 and 11
#5: Me, DH, our 3 kids ages 10,8 and 3.

We already know that the 5 kids will pretty much sleep in different rooms on different nights- no biggie. So bumping to a 4 person hotel room is no problem for us- we would just put one of my children on my parents reservation.

Our current itenerary has us hitting a park at opening thru lunch then heading to a water park for a few hours, then hitting another park in the evenings. Most of our group has never been before (only Room #4 has been) so we intend to spend a lot of time in the parks.

We are on the dining plan. We have dinner reservations for Sunday thru Friday nights at: (in no particular order) 50'sPT, Ohana, Kona Cafe, Whispering Canyon, LeCellier & Coral Reef. We basically tried to schedule dinner in the park we inteneded to be in for the afternoon. We planned on doing the dining plan whether free dining was offered or not.

We have free dining for 2 of our rooms and we have to 40% off code for 3 of the rooms (my aunt had the pin code). When free dining came out- we tried to move over to Wilderness Lodge- but there is no availability for our dates.

We have crunched the numbers and if we were to go down to AK it would save us $2100.00 off of our current total. If we go down even further to a Moderate and can get the dining plan free it will save us $3700.00. Even further down to a value and our savings with free dining would be $5200.00!!! That is half the cost of the trip. So this is where we get our dilemma and wonder- is the Polynesian extra space and monorail worth 2100- 5200 dollars?

We really want this trip to be magical for everyone- We are calling this our "Dreams Come True Grand Gathering". But even with that- we also want to be able to afford to come back again as well!

Crystal

 

[ktink]

The Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge are both deluxe resorts but with smaller room accommodation's (rooms have less sq. footage) yet still have two queen size beds. The Wilderness Lodge is a Magic Kingdom Resort and has boat service to the MK. The Animal Kingdom Lodge is very close to Animal Kingdom. Both are beautiful resorts, I would chose one of these resorts before dropping to a Moderate or Value.

Both resorts have loads of information available for you on their FAQ Threads.

Have a great trip.

This is exactly what we did, well at least the end result. We decided due to extra expenses around the house that we didn't want to fork out the $$$ for Poly. So we went straight from Poly to ASMu and I knew I just wouldn't be happy after having booked Poly. So we went up to a moderate and then I thought for just a little more we could stay at a reasonable deluxe.

 

[That70sGuy]

Ok- I will try and answer all the questions so everyone can get a better idea of our group dynamics. We are going Sept. 15-22. Here is our current room breakdown:
#1: My mom and dad
#2: My sister and brother in law
#3: My Grandmother
#4: My aunt, uncle, their two boys ages 15 and 11
#5: Me, DH, our 3 kids ages 10,8 and 3.

I realize that you said that you have several larger folks in your party, but you've got Mom, Dad, Sis, BIL, and Grandmother all sleeping one to a bed in queen size beds. Please don't take this the wrong way, but do they not like each other?

Understandably, people have differing expectations of privacy and personal levels of modesty, but it doesn't look like you're going to be spending a lot of time in the rooms anyway. And with so many rooms, there's bound to be lots of 'visiting' back and forth. Basically the only time everyone will split up will be for sleeping arrangements.

Rather than 'downgrading' resorts, could you consider downgrading from 5 rooms to 4?


Peace (and a happy trip, whatever you decide)
T7G

 

[Flagondry]

Based on what you've told us, I'd switch to a value as long as the bed situation would be ok. I know I can't share a double, so dh and I will each have a bed at Pop. If the sleeping arrangements will be ok with everyone then I would switch.

My only still raised red flag is that most people are newbies. Is grandma ok without a break, or is she ok with a room break while you hit the waterparks? Has everyone agreed that they don't mind bus rides or using the car? You don't plan to be in the room at all, so if the transportation and sleeping situations are clear I think it makes total sense to save 5000.00. That is why we chose Pop as well. It was not hard for us to pick between a 1700-2200 pkg versus 900.00 for the same exact trip besides hotel.

 

[chocovrdmicears]

I LOVE the Poly..we have stayed there the last 3 times..The rooms are enormous..the dining is fantastic, theming is beautiful and the convience of the monorail is amazing.....all that being said, it just was not in our budget to stay there on our upcoming trip is Sept. So I did a ton of research and we decided to stay at the Coronado Springs and we are SOOO excited! I have heard nothing but fantastic reviews regarding the transportation (which with our 2 kids (4 & 5) is really important)...The kids play area and the pool look amazing. We are truly looking forward to our 'new' adventure... (check out BUZZ link and info..amazing)

The fact is we are saving over $2,000..this is a fact that just cannot be overlooked! And the way we look at it, yes, a resort choice does factor into the overall feeling of your vacation. However, regardless of where I stay, I will still cry when I walk into the Magic Kingdom and see the castle. My kids will still scream with delight when we plunge down Splash Mountain for the
8th time, I will still get goosebumps when we come up over the horizon on the Kilimijaro Safari and they play that music while I look for elephants and giraffes, my son will still sit wide eyed as we go through Small World for the
12th time, I will still choke up when the Beast turns into the prince at the show in MGM Studios , our steaks will still melt in our mouths when we dine at LeCelier, my dh and i will still cringe when our dd asks to go on Figment for the 5th time and our Chocolate Covered Mouse Ears Ice Cream will still be the best tasting treat in the WORLD....wherever you decide to stay, you will undoubtedly have a most magical gathering. Good Luck!

 

[eliza61]

Our current itenerary has us hitting a park at opening thru lunch then heading to a water park for a few hours, then hitting another park in the evenings. Most of our group has never been before (only Room #4 has been) so we intend to spend a lot of time in the parks.

We have crunched the numbers and if we were to go down to AK it would save us $2100.00 off of our current total. If we go down even further to a Moderate and can get the dining plan free it will save us $3700.00. Even further down to a value and our savings with free dining would be $5200.00!!! That is half the cost of the trip. So this is where we get our dilemma and wonder- is the Polynesian extra space and monorail worth 2100- 5200 dollars?

We really want this trip to be magical for everyone- We are calling this our "Dreams Come True Grand Gathering". But even with that- we also want to be able to afford to come back again as well!

Crystal

Hey Crystal,
This is a hard dilemma. Can you ask some of the other adults in your party how they feel? When we did our family vacation in '06, it was the first time for many in our party so they wanted to splurge as much as humanly possible. We did all the little extras (illluminations cruises, concierge etc) that we could. It was memorable. Resorts are important to us, nothing worse than wishing you were staying so where else. How about the other folks in your party? When we have a jammed packed touring schedule we love to come back and chill on our balcony.

 

[DanenRox]

I thought I'd stick my 2 cents in....first, your itinerary is quite ambitious. Theme Park, water Park, then theme park all in one day is busy. Nonetheless, it means you're spending much (if not all) of your day out of your room. So the easy answer is...downgrade...why spend a ton on a room you're not in? On the other hand, is Grandma really going to want to schlep around the parks with you every day? Probably not, so some consideration has to be given to staying at a lovely and peaceful resort with beautiful grounds and lots of amenities. My suggestion:
a happy medium....a happy moderate. Port Orleans Riverside is beautiful, but as previously posted, Port Orleans French Quarter gets great reviews for it's small size with easy assess to food court, buses etc. Oh yes, and two more things before I go...September is HOT. And finally, the monorail access requires lots of up/down ramp walks...walking to a bus is just as convenient. So says me.

 

[richard_andmel]

Our current itenerary has us hitting a park at opening thru lunch then heading to a water park for a few hours, then hitting another park in the evenings. Most of our group has never been before (only Room #4 has been) so we intend to spend a lot of time in the parks.


We really want this trip to be magical for everyone- We are calling this our "Dreams Come True Grand Gathering". But even with that- we also want to be able to afford to come back again as well!

OK, first of all this itinerary is going to kill you after a couple of days. I think you could do that maybe two or three days of the trip but anymore than that will be rough on adults and kids. If swimming is important, have a really good look at the pools at each resort you are considering. I think the Polynesian and Animal Kingdom are the two best if you don't consider SAB... The water parks really take it out of you compared to your resort pool and some quiet time in the room. We usually go in September so I have a bit of experience here.

We have a mixed 3 generation group as well. So people getting back to the resort easily when they need to is a must. Transportation in September is pretty smooth as the crowds are lighter.

When you are looking at the savings how many parties is that split between?

And lastly, although I recommended the WL earlier because of it's proximity to the MK the Animal Kingdom Lodge will always be our favorite. It's where we stay 90% of the time. And The Mara is a great "food court" if that plays high in your priorities.

Mel

 

[Princess Stitch]

I don't know if anyone mentioned this, but did you consider that they also have the family suites at ASMu? That might work out better for when you need more space. There are two bathrooms and I understand they are much bigger than a regular value room and very nice. You'll get the fun theming, and lots of space! I just know that in my case I have limited funds, I'd rather take two trips then one really big one When we went, we were so tired by the time we got back to our room that we didn't care where we were sleeping! lol.. that being said we don't stay at 5 star hotels very much so we're not used to all the plush luxury. IMO Disney is about the atmosphere and the theme parks, and you'll get that at a value.

Also, I'd go for the dining plan if you get a chance. It's an awesome deal and it means that people are free to split up for meals and there's no worring about splitting cheques when you all eat together.

 

[minnie61650]

The Family Suites at All Star Music sleep up to 6 plus a child under 3.

Here is some info on the Family Suites:

*** They are 520 square feet.

*** The Family suites are located in the Jazz and Calypso buildings at All Star Music.(these are the closet buildings to the food court and the bus stop.

*** They cost less than a standard room at AKL or WL.

***1-6 adults may stay in a suite for the same set price.
(There is an additional fee of $10 per night for a 3rd or 4th additional adult in a standard value room.)

*** They have a QUEEN size bed (the other values and even the mods do not have a queen bed.

***The fridge is included (if you booked 2 connecting value rooms you would need to pay $10 extra for a night for a fridge if you wanted one.

*** They come with a microwave and coffeepot (If you booked 2 connecting value rooms you would not even be be able to rent a microwave and coffeepot.

***They have 2 TV's (if you book POR or a Deluxe room which sleeps 5 you will have 1 TV)

***They have 2 bathrooms (if you book POR or a Deluxe room which sleeps 5 you will have 1 Bathroom.)



------------------------------------------------------

I was pleasantly surprised when I tried the pull outs at the Family Suites.


The pull outs are not your ordinary pull outs and are quite comfortable.

They were the most confortable pull out/convertable sofas/chairs that I have ever tried.


This is a paragraph taken from the All Star Music Family Suites review of the DIS resorts page:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/resorts/asm.htm

All Star Music Resort Family Suites

Review
by Kevin Klose
DIS Content Editor


........

Both the chair and the ottoman open into beds. The chair opens to a twin size bed and the ottoman opens to a “junior” sized bed….about the size of a cot. The bed and the chair are amazing designs. The kids will think they are cool and Disney’s competitors are going to steal this idea. Watch for different versions of this to spring up everywhere.

---------------------------------------------------------

The sofa opens into a double bed.

Here is a photo I took of the pullout chair when we stayed at All Star Music September 21.

Notice the seat and back of chair support the foldout bed.
There are no metal bars running under your back area.


I laid down on it and it was very comfortable.

In fact I was so happy with the fold outs that Iwanted to buy a pull out sofa and chair for my spare room but they are made exculsively for Disney.

Here is a link to a thread about my quest for the pull outs.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1236271&referrerid=&highlight=



----------------------------------------------

Here is some more info about the Family Suites:


The Family Suites are located in the Calypso and Jazz Inn Buildings.
Calypso Building 1 has 32 suites
Calypso Building 10 has 54 suites
Jazz Inn Building 2 has 52 suites
Jazz Inn Building 9 has 54 suites

The suites are located on all three floors, and are near each other, but none offer connecting suites. There is no price difference between the buildings.

Check here for the 2007 rates:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/disney-rates-2007.htm#VALUE


For comparison, the price of a Family Suite is $9-11 more then 2 Standard Rooms, or $13-15 less the 2 Preferred Rooms, depending on season.

------------------------



The new family suites offer an affordable and convenient option for larger families with the amenities of a studio apartment.

Families can be together in the suite while enjoying separate sleeping areas with added privacy. Having two bathrooms will not only save time, but makes getting ready easier for the whole family. Plus, extra amenities like a microwave enable guests to prepare warm snacks and meals. With the extra room, guests can relax and recount the memories of the day before falling off to a goodnight’s sleep.

They:

-Sleep up to 6 (plus one child under age 3 in a Pak-n-Play crib)
-Studio amenities and separate sleeping areas giving more privacy than a standard room.
-Queen bed, full-size pullout sofa, convertible ottoman & chair sleepers (4 separate sleepers)
-Private master bedroom and family room have 27” flat CRT TV and high speed internet access.
-Kitchenette with microwave, small refrigerator (4.3 cu. ft) and coffee pot
-Two-full bathrooms
Here is the layout:

See this thread for photos:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1392866

------------------------------------------------------------------------

For more info please see the FAQ thread:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1072409

Have fun at Disney wherever you choose to stay!

 

[Piglets Mommy]

However, regardless of where I stay, I will still cry when I walk into the Magic Kingdom and see the castle. My kids will still scream with delight when we plunge down Splash Mountain for the
8th time, I will still get goosebumps when we come up over the horizon on the Kilimijaro Safari and they play that music while I look for elephants and giraffes, my son will still sit wide eyed as we go through Small World for the
12th time, I will still choke up when the Beast turns into the prince at the show in MGM Studios , our steaks will still melt in our mouths when we dine at LeCelier, my dh and i will still cringe when our dd asks to go on Figment for the 5th time and our Chocolate Covered Mouse Ears Ice Cream will still be the best tasting treat in the WORLD....wherever you decide to stay, you will undoubtedly have a most magical gathering. Good Luck!

Well put! Gotta love all those magical moments....counting down to the next ones!

 

[Kdog]

I downgraded from the Poly to POP on my last vacation, and now I am a POP girl. I had always stayed at the Poly and still love that resort, but I couldn't believe how much I liked POP for so much less money. Before the trip, I worried about transportation, crowds, small rooms, etc, but I did not have trouble with any of those concerns. My DH and I went during the Dec. holiday week and we rarely waited more than 10 minutes for a bus (except the Downtown Disney bus--we always waited 30 + min for that bus.) I loved the theming and the food court, and I really loved how much money I saved (we lived it up at the restaurants, etc.) That said, we don't have kids, and being on the monorail might be very important to me when I have little ones that need to come back for naps.

 

[MELSMICE]

We recently stayed at both Coronado Springs & POR for the first time. Prior to that we always did deluxe or our DVC. We are huge fans of the Poly - probably our favorite deluxe.

I will admit I was a deluxe snob, until we stayed at the moderates. I thought they were fantastic & if you're looking to save money I would highly recommend them. The food courts/restaurants were great. The shops were large. The recreation was great. Bus service was good. I personally don't have anything negative to say about them.

I guess you'd have to consider whether you can live with the full size bed instead of queens. As far as the size of the resorts, there is walking involved, depending on where you're located, but that doesn't bother our family. We love walking around the resort.

Honestly, if it's a question of money, I'd switch in a heartbeat. If your heart is set on the Poly, however, & the money isn't an issue, then go with the Poly.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

We usually stay deluxe but if we dont then we stay at POP

 

[bigmoonmullen]

Hi:

Couple additional thoughts for you to consider.

1) If you downgrade to POP you may wish to get one additional room for more space.

2) Have you considered Splitting your stay... Maybe 3 days at POP and 4 days at Poly. You could save quite a bit of money and get the feel of two resorts. It really is pretty simple to switch resorts... check out early... take a cab or the bus (my preference is a cab)... check in early (room may or may not be ready)... If not, head to the park and more than likely it will be ready by the time you come back.

I agree with the one person... 3 different parks on one day will be a challenge and too many days of this will wear you out. The first couple days you probably will not notice it... but by the time you hit day 4 or 5.... whoa!!! I bet the pace slows up Hopefully Grandma is a go getter

Have a great trip,

Mark