Walt Disney World without the theme parks

[JennaDeeDooDah]

Interesting question. Let's say that you were going to go to Walt Disney World for a week in July, but weren't going to do the parks. You were traveling with your spouse and 4 year old daughter. Your spouse will be gone for 2 full days and most of the day for the days surrounding those two days due to traveling for business. What resort would you choose to stay in? What all would you do during those days?

 

[SuperRob]

Depending on the time of year, if you like to lounge around a pool, Beach Club / Yacht Club are great choices. Stormalong Bay is the best pool on Disney property.

Saratoga Springs is walking distance to Downtown Disney, where there is a lot to do.

Not sure if these count as "theme parks", but $50 to get into one of the water parks can be a fun day as well.

Resorts on the monorail loop make visiting other resorts and taking tours very easy.

Any resort on the Boardwalk has plenty of entertainment near by.

 

[marshmeloh]

I agree with SuperRob on all of his suggestions. I would also add:

Watching the animals at Animal Kingdom lodge (even without a Savannah view room or a room there at all). At night they have night vision goggles you can use for free from the lookout points to view the animals.

A lot of the deluxe resorts have fun things like campfires for the kids, outdoor movies, "dive in movies" etc at night. They also have things at the pool or crafts available. Many of these things are free, some have costs, just check with concierge for a list of events.

Fort Wilderness has a lot of fun things to do: Hiking through the trails, renting bikes, boats, fishing equipment etc.

There are arcades at every deluxe hotel.

Also remember with the exception of using the pool, you can visit any of the resorts using disney transportation without having tickets to the parks. You can hop on a bus to one of the parks and immediately transfer to another resorts buses. That way you can enjoy things like the boardwalk or viewing the animals or seeing the fireworks at the beach at the polynesian without staying at that resort!

 

[Mrs Green]

I would go to chef mickeys, tea at gf, Ohana, whispering canyons....pretty much eat alot! I would watch the water parade and wishes from the beach. I would go do some of the activities over at the campground, especially meet with chip and Dale at the campfire and watch movies. I would hang at the pool a lot! Based on my list of stuff, I guess I would probably stay at a deluxe resort near mk.

 

[puertorican00676]

We did almost that, we went for a weekend, no parks, we did just pools, restaurants and also took a day to go to typhoon lagoon! We had an awesome time! No regrets and did not miss theme parks. We stayed at coronado springs. The good thing is no matter where you stay, you can move around easily.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

These are great suggestions! I know we are looking strongly at Ohana because our daughter loved it back when she was 2 and still watches Lilo and Stitch every chance she gets. We also thought about Chef Mickey's. I hadn't even considered the electric water pageant or the campfires! Those would be great things to do at night. Do you have to stay at Animal Kingdom lodge to watch the animals. I've never even set foot in that hotel so I really don't know how visible the animals are.

I just can't decide what hotel to stay at. We are going to be staying at Art of Animation in April, she stayed at All Star Movies in January with my mom, and she absolutely loved The Royal Guest Rooms at Riverside. I'd like to do a fun resort for her, but really love the idea of staying at the Beach Club or Boardwalk. Then Wilderness Lodge sounds like the perfect place for a park-free vacation. I just don't know. So, tell me, if you absolutely had to pick a resort for the three of us, which do you think you would pick?

 

[HotMama]

We went with DH while he had to work. We did a split stay; Saratoga & Boardwalk. We love Saratoga because there were so many pools to venture too and the kids activities were great. We loved Boardwalk to walk around, especially in the evening there is so much entertainment! Have fun!

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

We went with DH while he had to work. We did a split stay; Saratoga & Boardwalk. We love Saratoga because there were so many pools to venture too and the kids activities were great. We loved Boardwalk to walk around, especially in the evening there is so much entertainment! Have fun!

Thank you. Boardwalk is one I am really considering, but I'm not sure how much my four-year-old would like it. I'm also really considering the cabins and Wilderness Lodge. I love the idea of walking the grounds there, playing in the pool, and spending a lot of time at the Tri-Circle D Ranch. That, added on the seeing the EWP makes me really consider those two parks. Then I think about how Caribbean Beach has 9 pools and I think that might be a lot of fun. I didn't know Saratoga Springs had so many pools! Now I have to go check that one out.

 

[StarWarsJez]

I'm a bit confused - why don't you take your daughter to the park on your own - even if it's just one day at MK?

 

[imthemamahere]

If I were going to stay just at the resort... and had the money for a deluxe... I'd stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge in a savannah view room.

Now, we always rent a car for our Disney trips, so if you're going to be depending entirely on bus transportation, that may not work out so well for you.

But for us, the ability to sit out on the small balcony with a bit of breakfast and watch the animals strolling by? It's priceless.

My little guy is 4, and he's animal-obsessed. He loves water, but isn't really a "swimmer" on his own yet. I'd love to take him to Beach Club or Yacht Club to enjoy Stormalong Bay, but... not yet. When he's bigger and can truly swim, that's on our to-do list. For now, we love the pool at Animal Kingdom Lodge. It's more manageable for keeping an eye (or a hand) on my little guy while he's still learning...

As for what to do, there's a lot of stuff to do at any of the deluxe resorts. There are activities of all sorts going on all day. At AKL, they do everything from arts and crafts activities to storytelling to animal feeding time to an end-of-day parade for the kids. Near the pool, there's a small playground that my son really enjoyed at 3 1/2. If you don't have a savannah-view room, there are viewing platforms (some with rocking chairs to sit in) for looking at the animals scattered through the resort. In the evenings, there are night-vision goggles available for watching the animals settle down for the night. And more...

From there, I'd resort-hop around to other resorts for some meals and a change of scenery. I'd probably hit Downtown Disney as well, let my son play a bit at the Lego store, grab a bite there, etc. You could also do a day (as others have suggested) at one of the water parks. Either way, to me, Animal Kingdom Lodge makes the vacation feel more unique - thanks to the theming and the presence of the animals, it's more than just a hotel room and a pool, if that makes sense. (Because you can stay off Disney property for far less, if all you want is a room and a pool!)

 

[LindaBabe]

If I were going to stay just at the resort... and had the money for a deluxe... I'd stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge in a savannah view room.

Now, we always rent a car for our Disney trips, so if you're going to be depending entirely on bus transportation, that may not work out so well for you.

But for us, the ability to sit out on the small balcony with a bit of breakfast and watch the animals strolling by? It's priceless.

My little guy is 4, and he's animal-obsessed. He loves water, but isn't really a "swimmer" on his own yet. I'd love to take him to Beach Club or Yacht Club to enjoy Stormalong Bay, but... not yet. When he's bigger and can truly swim, that's on our to-do list. For now, we love the pool at Animal Kingdom Lodge. It's more manageable for keeping an eye (or a hand) on my little guy while he's still learning...

As for what to do, there's a lot of stuff to do at any of the deluxe resorts. There are activities of all sorts going on all day. At AKL, they do everything from arts and crafts activities to storytelling to animal feeding time to an end-of-day parade for the kids. Near the pool, there's a small playground that my son really enjoyed at 3 1/2. If you don't have a savannah-view room, there are viewing platforms (some with rocking chairs to sit in) for looking at the animals scattered through the resort. In the evenings, there are night-vision goggles available for watching the animals settle down for the night. And more...

From there, I'd resort-hop around to other resorts for some meals and a change of scenery. I'd probably hit Downtown Disney as well, let my son play a bit at the Lego store, grab a bite there, etc. You could also do a day (as others have suggested) at one of the water parks. Either way, to me, Animal Kingdom Lodge makes the vacation feel more unique - thanks to the theming and the presence of the animals, it's more than just a hotel room and a pool, if that makes sense. (Because you can stay off Disney property for far less, if all you want is a room and a pool!)

I absolutely concur! There are daily activities for kids both in the lodge and by the pool. I would stay at Jambo house, which has a zero entry pool and 3 savannahs of animals, a counter service and easy access to 3 "sit down" restaurants. If you visit the AKL Thread on the resorts board, you will find links to the schedule and other resort infor.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I agree with AKL...the Epcot resorts would be too close to the parks to resist. I am also not a fan of SAB. AKL feels like a destination of its own. I think WL could be good too, but again, a little too close to MK to resist!

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I'm a bit confused - why don't you take your daughter to the park on your own - even if it's just one day at MK?

Because we don't want to. We have been to Disney multiple times and are interested in taking in all of the extra stuff there is to do there. Since we are going in July, and are really not like Fast Pass+, this seems like the perfect time to not do the parks and just experience all of the other stuff. We are talking about doing water parks, miniature golf, the ranch at Wilderness Lodge, taking in the water pageant, doing some character dining in the resorts, and just taking in the atmosphere at the resorts.

I appreciate the responses. I like the idea of the savannas at AKL. My husband is really not interested in staying at that resort, though. I'm getting really excited, though, just reading the responses and ideas everyone has!

 

[BlueFairy]

WL feels like such an escape to me. And my kids LOVE the pool with a great slide. Also, it is small enough that I feel like I can manage it on my own without help from DH. We are choosing WL for this same sort of trip, partly because of these reasons and partly because DDs think that it is their "hotel" and they absolutely love it. I'll highlight the items below that we're including in our 3 night itinerary.

So the pitch - you can get a room with bunk beds, you can view parts of Wishes from the boat launch, Electric Water Pageant from the beach, campfire and movie on the beach, playground, poolside activities, crafts in the Cub's Den during afternoons, a room with checkers at VWL, arcade, that gigantic lobby and the areas that beg to be explored.

Then there's the boat to CR for Chef Mickey's, monorail to Poly and GF, jumping off point for the Pirate and Pals Fireworks cruise (more Wishes), and more.

And the other boat that goes to FW for Hoop de Doo, Trails End restaurant, all the waterfront activities at FW, Chip and Dale Campfire Singalong (and movie) - FREE, and whatever fun you can drum up near Tri Circle D. Also there's a walking/bike trail to WL here too.

I think WL also has transportation options which are way better than AKL. We enjoyed one day there, but I just can't see trying to experience much of WDW property while relying solely on buses. A car would make AKL more attractive.

Finally, I find the isolation of AKL to be restrictive for dining if you don't have park restaurants to choose from. Of course with a little one that's often less important, but there are many kid friendly dining options available when we stay at WL when you count the restaurants that are available with transportation.

I have also done a Boardwalk trip with a baby as a single parent. It was lovely. The walks around the BW and the boats were wonderful. We did have friends meet us in the parks, so it's not apples to apples, but I don't think you'd be disappointed.