Value or Moderate ... please weigh in

[mchelle77]

We stayed at ASMo last time we went (11/2009) and swore we'd go Moderate next time. We thought we were waiting until 4/2015, but we just decided to go again this November and booked last night (ASMu)

We talked ourselves out of POFQ last time because we were able to add a day. This time because we're losing over a year of saving up, we're thinking about sticking with the value again. We're going for 9 days and THREE of those will be pool days (so the "how much will you actually be there?" question is moot. We WILL be there quite a bit! LOL)

The other thing - at first glance it seems like a big savings to go value. BUT! If free dining becomes available when we go, we'd automatically upgrade to the regular dining plan (rather than QS) so we'd have to pay the difference ... therefore, making the increase in cost a lot less than we're thinking.

Thoughts?

 

[LisaTC]

If you look at: http://www.easywdw.com/resorts/best-disney-world-value-resort-hotel/ I think they give good reviews on the best of this or that. The above link is Values and there is a section for pools.

With regard to Port Orleans, I think the POR pool takes an edge over POFQ AND the POR Food Court is much better and you are on the River and can take the boat to DTD as you know. According to the above site the best Mod pool is Caribbean beach.

With 3 down days, it would be nice to be close to DTD via the boat.

 

[disd55]

If you're going to be spending a couple of days just at the resort, I would go with a mod. You want to actually have fun at the resort right? You want a good pool right? Values do not have slides at the pools which is a big plus for mods.

Now, with regard to which mod, It depends. Do you care about walking? If not choose CBR because it is VERY big but has an amazing pool. It's also very beautiful and feels very tropical. If food court matters, I would go with POR or POFQ. POFQ has really good beignets. But POR has more choices I believe. The pool is good at both of those but not as good as CBR. In addition,CBR does not yet have queen beds in every room but will, as they are in the process of switching them.

 

[bookgirl]

I voted Mod.

POFQ is my favorite resort so, I'd choose it.

I think with pool days your daughter might enjoy the pool slide (if old enough) and the boat to DTD is the best.

The nice thing about PO is that POR and POFQ are sister resorts so you can boat or walk between the two and use all the food courts and pools.


I've done value and mod and honeslty based just on money I'd be fine at ASMu, but with resort days I think the nicer resort is worth a little more money, plus the better ddp if FD comes out.

 

[Kae]

Go mod but I would pick POR or POFQ over CBR.

Kae

 

[Sue M]

I voted moderate. Love POR and POFQ. The landscaping is beautiful, rooms recently refurbed, queen beds, nice main pool and POR has quiet pools too. Boat to DTD, horse & carriage rides, fun evening entertainment, and great food court.
Nice bus stops under cover with benches. The mods are quieter, more relaxing atmosphere then the values, I think with 3 resort days that will be nice.

 

[Day-Day]

How many in your party and what ages? This might affect the recommendation.

 

[dminnie]

I'd go with a mod. With POR and POFQ, you can use pools from either resort. The slide at POFQ is not the best, unless it's a LITTLE kid using it or someone nervous about slides trying to get used to them maybe. The slide at CSR is the longest of the mods and they have the largest hot tub. CBR has a nice kiddie pool area, if your kids a short enough for the height requirements. It's nice that the mods have quiet pools too. If the main pool is really busy, it can be fun to find another pool go to to and just hang out. CSR has a ping pong table and volleyball court by the pool too. I'm focusing on things for your pool days since you are having 3 of them.

CSR's pool is a ways from the main building where there are 3 restaurants to choose from (2 cs and 1 TS), but there is a snack bar at the pool too. CBR, POR, and POFQ have their food service areas pretty close to the pools.

CBR only has full sized beds...the other mods all have queen. POR is the most recently renovated of the mods(2012). The boat to DTD might be fun on a pool day too.

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

Moderate and shorten your trip if need be. IMHO, nine days including three only pool days is too long.

 

[maryj11]

If you can I would stay moderate. The values seem more noisy and crowded to me. The moderates just have a more peaceful atmosphere and the grounds are beautiful. The pool at CBR looks really nice if you are staying 3 days at the pool, plus they have hot tubs.

 

[Dizneefamily+4]

We've never stayed Value so I can't speak to them - nothing against them, we just started out on property at Mods and have done both Mods and Deluxe, and don't think we want Values after staying Mod and Deluxe - but we really do enjoy the few extra perks that come with staying at a Mod. We like the bigger in-room fridge and safe, not to mention more space. We also like having slides at the pools for our kids, the option of a table service restaurant, and the less chaotic atmosphere. We do take a mid-day swim/break at the resort, so our resort is not just a room to sleep in and store our stuff.

I think if we'd started out with a Value, our perception may be different, but unless budget became a serious concern, I think we'll continue to stay at mods and deluxe.

 

[katrina1122]

FYI November can be too cold to swim so your 3 pool days may turn into much less. We were there Nov 2 to the 12th and got in the pool 1x for about an hour because it was just too cold otherwise. We were at POFQ. That'd be my choice over CBR because it's a nice pool, but more importantly it's queen beds and not fulls.

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

FYI November can be too cold to swim so your 3 pool days may turn into much less. We were there Nov 2 to the 12th and got in the pool 1x for about an hour because it was just too cold otherwise. We were at POFQ. That'd be my choice over CBR because it's a nice pool, but more importantly it's queen beds and not fulls.

Oh, yeah, that's a good point. I was there the weekend of November 9th last year and it was too cold to swim at all. You might want to plan for needing all nine days to be at the park.

 

[Yellowstonetim]

I'm one of the few that will vote value unless free dining is available, then switch to moderate. The pools are great at the VALUE, kids can have fun and you can stay longer. Also, if the weather is cold you can spend more time in the parks without "losing."

With free dining the difference is minuscule so go moderate!

 

[Disneylover99]

You swore next time you would book a moderate......

There's a reason why you said this, so book a moderate! Forget the difference in price, or all the other reasons why you shouldn't book the moderate. Just book it!

But if I were you I would book POR or POFQ and not CBR because they still have double beds.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

At risk of sounding like an echo, I'd suggest Moderate and POR. The larger beds are a big deal for us, and you'll have multiple pools to choose from (at both POR and POFQ). The boat to DTD is another fun park free activity.

You can help justify the extra cost by looking at what you are saving on the extra days of park tickets. Also as you mentioned the dining upgrade cost makes the Moderate look so good too...

 

[mchelle77]

Our daughter is 8, so the pools are a big thing for her. But great point about the amount of pool days. Last time we DID swim in November (we're from New England ... ) but one of those days was a little much for me so I went to the poolside bar instead!

We were also considering a water park, but now I'm thinking an extra park day and a moderate might be the way to go.

We had no issues with the value resort, although we were "stuck in the ducks" and I thought the beds WERE a little small.

We've got some time to think, so that's good ... last time I wanted POFQ but my husband saw POR and loved it. But now we've been to the Caribbean twice since then and LOVED it there, which is why we were leaning towards CBR.

 

[disd55]

We've got some time to think, so that's good ... last time I wanted POFQ but my husband saw POR and loved it. But now we've been to the Caribbean twice since then and LOVED it there, which is why we were leaning towards CBR.

Just a reminder, CBR has 7 bus stops, if you don't mind such a big resort. POFQ has 1 and shares with POR's 4 bus stops but POFQ goes first.

 

[mchelle77]

Just a reminder, CBR has 7 bus stops, if you don't mind such a big resort. POFQ has 1 and shares with POR's 4 bus stops but POFQ goes first.

We drive there. Buses are NOT an issue for us, thankfully!

 

[shell8558]

We have stayed at both CBR and POR and prefer POR . My kids like the pool better at POR . They also like the food court MUCH better . With that being said - we planned a last minute trip for this past February and chose all star sports to save money . I was worried that I wouldn't enjoy it after staying moderate -But we were pleasantly surprised. We did use the pool several times , but the kids were fine without the slide . So - if price is an issue , you will be fine at the value . Guess I'm in the minority , but I would rather stay value and gain a couple more days at disney !