I'm wondering what I really am looking for in a room - will I be in there that much? I too would like to visit as many hotels as possible - I was thinking one for the first week, one for the second week, then the cruise for 4 days and then another hotel for 3 days - do you think that's possible?
Raspberry Bubbles, I don't know what kind of event you are having or how long it will last. But if it is a long-lasting event, trust me, you won't be in your resort room that much. Because of that fact, I think you should save your pennies and book a less inexpensive room. You can stay in a more extravagant room at another time.
I have been vacationing in WDW for years. I have stayed in Disney's largest suite (the Captains Deck Suite at the Yacht Club) and in Disney's smallest resort room (any of the Value Resorts). I have loved each of those resort rooms in their own way. Depending upon what I wanted out of a vacation, I booked my resort accommodations accordingly.
For my vow renewal vacation, I booked the Grand Floridian for a few reasons:
1) Grand Floridian was first resort we stayed in at WDW
2) Grand Floridian was our favorite resort
3) Grand Floridian vacation was where we watched Wedding Pavilion being built
4) Grand Floridian was where our Welcome Party was being held
5) Grand Floridian was where our pre-wedding photos were being taken
6) Grand Floridian was next door to Wedding Pavilion where our ceremony was being held
Honestly, I was going to stay at the BoardWalk Villas for that portion of my vacation and did have a room booked there. But as the date of my vow renewal approached, I just couldnt see going through with my fairy tale if my favorite resort wasnt a part of the picture. I decided to give my BoardWalk Villas room to a friend to use, and I booked my family into the Grand Floridian. I was so happy that I did that because my family simply adores the Grand Floridian. But it did make it a bit of a pain to be located there while the bulk of my guests were staying at the BoardWalk. Oh, well! Everyone seemed to manage okay. We either would hook up at the Grand Floridian, or wed hook up somewhere else on property (the BoardWalk, the Yacht Club, the Epcot Theme Park, etc.).
Its no secret here on the Dis that I like to sleep around. I have stayed in all of Disneys official resorts, and most of them multiple times. I have a few favorites. No. 1 is the Grand Floridian. No. 2 is either Port Orleans French Quarter or the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I even adore the Pop Century and Fort Wilderness Cabins. I havent stayed in a bad resort yet. All of them were different and had something unique to offer.
Whenever I am planning a vacation, I pick a few places to stay and work out a resort-hopping schedule. I must admit that resort-hopping can be expensive. I never rent a car while in WDW so I have to rely on Disneys transportation system and taxicabs. When I switch resorts, it is usually by taxicab. Also, when I check out of one resort, I have to tip Bell Services. And when I check into the next resort, I have to tip Bell Services again. Taxicab rides (plus tips) and multiple Bell Services tips certainly do add up. Also, check-out time is 11 AM and check-in time isnt until 3 PM or 4 PM. That means that on the day that I am switching resorts, I wont have access to a room for quite a while. I have to plan accordingly. Just thought Id mention that. But I do love resort-hopping. It breaks up my vacation and allows me to see WDW from different perspectives.
The AllEars website has lots of resort photos:
click here. Take a look at them and see which resorts strike your fancy. You can select three resorts and book them the way that you mentioned (Resort 1 for first week, Resort 2 for second week, Resort 3 for post-cruise). Or you could book two resorts (Resort 1 for first two weeks and Resort 2 for post-cruise). Its up to you how much resort-hopping you can handle.
Lots of folks dont like to hop at all and prefer to stay put. My family is a bunch of vagabonds so we dont mind pulling up stakes after a night or two and moving on to the next resort for another night or two, followed by yet a third resort for another couple of nights. The most resort-hopping that we have done in one vacation was five or six resorts. Our vacations were normally two-week vacations until the last two years. Then we moved into longer time-frames. Last years vacation was almost five and a half weeks. We stayed in the following resorts: All-Star Movies (our first stay there), Saratoga Springs, Polynesian (our first stay there), Grand Floridian, Beach Club (our first stay there), BoardWalk Villas, and Beach Club Villas. If you counted those resorts, you would have noticed that we hopped around seven times. That was our record.
Only you can decide what is right for you. But don't be afraid to do something a little out of the ordinary. I never had any intention of sleeping in each of Disney's resorts. But somehow it worked out that way. I now have to find a new place to vacation.