Suite at A of A vs. room at POFQ

[paperstarfish]

We are a family of four with two boys traveling the week of Thanksgiving and staying five nights. We have always stayed at moderates but my husband would really like more space. We are debating between a room at POFQ or a family suite at A of A. Thoughts? We have never stayed at a value before. I would love some opinions. The boys will be 7 and 12 if that matters. Which would you pick? Thank you in advance for any opinions.

 

[loves to dive]

AoA is a cute resort on the outside and has a decent food court but in the end, it is still a value resort. I, personally, wouldn't pay moderate or in some cases, deluxe prices for a value resort.

 

[Disneylover99]

If you want more space go for AofA. You'll be getting an additional 250 sq. feet.

 

[bluezy]

We are a family of four with two boys traveling the week of Thanksgiving and staying five nights. We have always stayed at moderates but my husband would really like more space. We are debating between a room at POFQ or a family suite at A of A. Thoughts? We have never stayed at a value before. I would love some opinions. The boys will be 7 and 12 if that matters. Which would you pick? Thank you in advance for any opinions.

It really depends on *how* much more space you want and how much more you're willing to spend for that space. A suite at AoA will give you nearly double the amount of space as a standard value or moderate room, but you will pay more than double the cost as well. But that suite will give you a private master suite; a kitchenette; and 2 bathrooms (to name a few things). Your boys would probably enjoy the theming at AoA -- it's really gorgeous at night (especially the Cars area). Even our adult children enjoy staying there. We've stayed in the suites 3 times so far because they work really well for our family. That being said, every time we've stayed at AoA, we could have stayed at certain Deluxe resorts (that offer a room for 5) for about the same amount of money. We still chose AoA because we need 2 bathrooms...and my husband and I have been spoiled by having our own bedroom there so now it's going to be challenging for us to go back to having 4 or 5 of us in one standard room (when we decide we don't need to have 2 bathrooms...which might not be for a few more years since we have 2 teenage daughters).

 

[paperstarfish]

Thank you! I'll have to think about it. We don't really need the kitchenette or the second bathroom. Maybe a nicer room with balcony at AKL or something? Decisions, decisions....

 

[Mousemommy1]

If you don't need the kitchenette or second bathroom, you don't really "need" the extra space, because that's what you're getting.

We have stayed in a Nemo Suite at AoA and also POFQ. We are a family of five and loved the extra space, especially since our youngest was 15 months old when we stayed there and we were able to put him in the master bedroom to sleep and close the door while we stayed up in the "living area".

That being said, we thought AoA was a great resort, but when we were a family of four we found POFQ to have enough space for our needs.

 

[mickeynut1]

Thank you! I'll have to think about it. We don't really need the kitchenette or the second bathroom. Maybe a nicer room with balcony at AKL or something? Decisions, decisions....

We've never stayed at AoA, but if you don't need/want the kitchenette or second bathroom, I'd go with a regular room. With that said, we haven't stayed at POFQ either, but we love AKL! If AKL fits within your budget, I think that would be a great choice as it's a beautiful resort with great dining options, a nice pool, and good transportation. Good luck deciding, although I'm sure you'll have a great time no matter which resort you choose .

 

[bluezy]

Thank you! I'll have to think about it. We don't really need the kitchenette or the second bathroom. Maybe a nicer room with balcony at AKL or something? Decisions, decisions....

Just an FYI, the "bedroom" area of the standard AKL rooms is only 9 sq. ft. bigger than the "bedroom" area of a moderate resort room. While the overall room size is larger at AKL, the extra space is in the entrance and bathroom areas -- not the area that you'll be spending your time in. Of course, you'll have a balcony (and hopefully a great view!), so that might help make the room feel bigger.

Just thought I'd mention that since you said your husband is looking for "more space". We've never actually stayed at AKL but we usually visit there for a meal on every trip. One time we were walking around the resort and a housekeeper was turning over a room and we asked if we could just take a quick peek inside as we were thinking of staying there on a future trip. She graciously allowed us to walk into the room. The first thing my husband said was "This room doesn't feel any bigger than *our* room" (we were staying at Pop Century on that trip). I felt the same way.

 

[paperstarfish]

Thank you everyone! I don't have any first-hand knowledge outside of moderates so I appreciate the help!