SSR vs. AoA, help me decide!

[Juliet25]

I have a reservation at WL for May but my oldest daughter decided she wants to come, so that leaves us with limited choices for a family of 5. My options are essentially a 1 bedroom preferred at SSR, or a suite at AofA. I’ve stayed at POP but have only visited the outside of AoA. My kids are 15, 17, and 23, so the Disneyness of AoA isn’t a big draw, though my daughters are very into animation drawing. The theming is a bit over the top for me, but that Skyliner is a huge draw.

SSR would be a bit more relaxing I think, but the theming is so dull. I’ve stayed there twice in studio, but it’s been a long time. I love the 1 bedrooms with the full kitchen and laundry in-room. Obviously being close to Disney Springs is a bonus. Is it walkable? We plan to do 3 days in a park. I’m very interested in doing the extra hours for deluxe resort guests as we are definitely a family of night owls.

Pools aren’t really a big consideration as my kids don’t swim much any more. We won’t be doing a dining plan, so a kitchen is a plus. Price is basically the same. We’d do a Finding Nemo room at AoA.

Is there anything I’m not considering?

 

[leebee]

You could do 2 rooms at an AllStars. That's what we did when we went with DD, SIL, and the 9 year old. I asked for- and got- 2 connecting rooms. Both couples had some privacy, and we appreciated the space. We prefer the AllStars to POP or AoA due to the size. AllStar resorts are much smaller. Food court seems to be on the same level. Skyliner isn't a huge draw for us... if it rains you are stuck on buses anyhow. There's no kitchen with the 2 rooms at AllStars (unless you do a suite at ASMu) but you'll have 2 refrigerators and coffee makers, which is sufficient for making simple in-room breakfasts.

Yes, SSR is walkable to DisneySprings. DH and I were there in January, for a non-park trip. We walked over to DS every evening for dinner and cocktail/bar hopping. Pretty convenient to be able to walk back and forth.

 

[Juliet25]

You could do 2 rooms at an AllStars. That's what we did when we went with DD, SIL, and the 9 year old. I asked for- and got- 2 connecting rooms. Both couples had some privacy, and we appreciated the space. We prefer the AllStars to POP or AoA due to the size. AllStar resorts are much smaller. Food court seems to be on the same level. Skyliner isn't a huge draw for us... if it rains you are stuck on buses anyhow. There's no kitchen with the 2 rooms at AllStars (unless you do a suite at ASMu) but you'll have 2 refrigerators and coffee makers, which is sufficient for making simple in-room breakfasts.

Yes, SSR is walkable to DisneySprings. DH and I were there in January, for a non-park trip. We walked over to DS every evening for dinner and cocktail/bar hopping. Pretty convenient to be able to walk back and forth.

There's actually nothing available at a Value on our dates. I'll be honest, I stayed at a Value two out of our last three trips and I just didn't enjoy it. I do have the option of doing two rooms in a CSR Tower (one concierge), but that's getting pretty pricy. If I want to stay a full 7 nights, my choices are SSR or AoA. We're not too flexible with the dates, unfortunately.

 

[DanceDisney23]

With two teenagers and one young adult, I would do AOA for the two bathrooms alone. Unless you consider a two bedroom villa at SSR.

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

There's actually nothing available at a Value on our dates. I'll be honest, I stayed at a Value two out of our last three trips and I just didn't enjoy it. I do have the option of doing two rooms in a CSR Tower (one concierge), but that's getting pretty pricy. If I want to stay a full 7 nights, my choices are SSR or AoA. We're not too flexible with the dates, unfortunately.

If you didn't enjoy staying at the Value resorts, I am not sure you will enjoy AoA.

With the ages of your party, I would not do anything less than an option with 2 bathrooms. Are there any rooms available at POFQ or CBR for your dates? You could do 2 connecting(hopefully) rooms and have 4 beds and 2 bathrooms. POFQ (and POR) have the boat access to DS which is a plus for your group. CBR has the skyliner.

If you really want the Deluxe after hours, you could check out the Swalphin resorts for availability.

 

[sponica]

I don't like the bathroom layout in the 1BR SSR and would not do that with a party of 5.