What is most important to you when choosing a resort?

[bookgirl]

I choose based on they type of vacation and budget.

First I look at who's going and what will my days be like.

Am I going with family or friends? Then I'm probably only going to look at Moderates or Deluxes. (done two mods and two deluxes, probably won't do them all but have one or two I'd still like to try). My family prefers the nicer resorts and with multiple adults a larger room is more appealing. Plus if my parents go they are happier in a self contained resort and they want a more relaxing type of day with more transportation options.

Am I going by myself? Then probably value (I have one left to try POP) I have done one moderate solo trip as well and might do more in the future, but honestly I go all park commando when I'm solo so spending a lot of a room is a waste and I'm good with the value level hotels, I rarely use any of the perks associated with the upper two levels so I really do only need a clean bed, a hot shower, and a bus to the parks. (a coffee maker would be nice but I can work around that LOL)

The second thing I base my decision on is budget.

I did a huge WL trip in October (to the tune of about $2500) so when I made one last AP trip in Jan I looked at mods and values because I wanted to spend less but still do some of the extras I like. I went with the value both because I wouldn't be in the room much but also because I wanted to use what I had in my budget to do tours, an ADR, and pick up some new souvenirs rather than upgrade my resort.

I'm not sure I use any other factors besides those. Once I have budget and type of trip in place, it's just a matter of deciding if I want to do a repeat resort or a new one. I've been doing different values for the fun of it but next trip in Oct I've already booked two resorts with BB that are both repeats. I just need to decide if we're doing a Moderate or Deluxe. Budget will be the deciding factor with that trip. Mom plans to go with but I am also planning to do the UK in 2016 and that's a big trip to save up for so I think we might end up at POFQ (if mom cancels then all bets are off and I'm going to switch to POP)

All that being said Moderate is my favorite. I think it is the best payoff on what I pay to what I need. I'm not a pool person or a bar person, I don't use the excersise room and the spa prices at WDW are not even in the realm of what I'm willing to pay and I like food courts for a quick meal and prefer queen beds. I love the better theming/landscaping at moderates without the in your face giant icons. But in the end budget trumps everything.

 

[keneka]

What is in the resort main building (shop, restaurants, entertainment) & price. Most rooms are basically the same - some have slightly more amenities than others (but are they ones you'll use).

 

[fla4fun]

How long I will be there
Which parks I will be visiting most
Typical weather for time of year (prefer not to be in a resort with separate buildings during really hot and rainy season)
Budget for trip
Size of travel party

 

[EagleG17]

One word: convenience

 

[ColorsoftheWind1]

We've only gone a couple times. Our first stay was at Coronado Springs and the second was at French Quarters. After our first stay we found that the size of the resort really does mater to us. Getting off the bus and then having to walk another mile of so (at night it feels like it! lol) to our room was just not a highlight and something we look to avoid now. Another is amount of bus stops. One is the perfect number!

We are looking for a place that is comfortable, smaller in size and not much over $200 a night. Before a discount. Theres only 2 of us so room size is not an issue. A second mode of transportation, the boat, is a major perk. POFQ was perfect for us.

 

[Dentam]

Transportation to the parks (convenience and avoiding buses as much as possible) as well as staying at a resort with a theme that we love. We always stay at Deluxe resorts in WDW and will save in order to make it happen. That's why it's been a few years since our last trip to WDW. If we're going to go, we want to do it "right" (for us). We just went to DL last month and stayed offsite - across the road at a Ramada that as it turns out had construction which began around 7am every morning. We all really wished we had sprung for a room at one of the Disney hotels there instead!

 

[Dentam]

And I should mention that we've made an exception on the transportation end of things for the AKL. We really don't like how inconvenient it is to get to some of the parks via bus, but the theme of the resort really outweighs it - at least for my dad who says it is his favorite resort. We haven't stayed at the Contemporary since the theme of that resort just does not appeal to us. The Wilderness Lodge is my personal favorite because it reminds me of the PNW.

 

[JoeyEmmaMomma]

We are still in the stroller phase, so being able to roll our stroller on to the monorail to go to 2 of the parks is amazing. We tried the Poly last month and are hooked! We are going back in March and May!

Also, mattress sizes! We can't do double beds. One night of no sleep at Pop, and I doubt we will ever go back, lol.

 

[EvilQueenT]

My kids (1 boy 1 girl) are 5 years apart so as they got older we started booking rooms that offered a bunk bed option that solved the space option well enough for us (they're 25 and 30 now). The bunk bed option also helped when I took my granddaughter and my daughter...daughter didn't want to sleep with her niece so that worked then too. When we pick a resort otherwise we look at things like whose going (I go w just me and 1 family member up to parties of 8 or 9 of mixed family members). If it's an all adult trip say for f&w we try to stay at a boardwalk area resort or cbr for close proximity to epcot. When I first started going with just my granddaughter she was 5 or 6 and I knew I wouldn't be able to carry her late at night if she were to fall asleep on a bus etc... so we stayed at a monorail resort which covered us best since we did most of our days between epcot and mk. Most of my trips now a days are just with my granddaughter who just turned 11 so we bounce around. In the warmer months I usually book at resorts that have a mix of shade and sun with a clear site line at the pools so I don't have to be in the water or have her out of site. I like POR the best for that as compared to say CBR with the pirate turrets in the pool that look great but block your view.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

Location, location, location. It's also important that we have at least 3 separate sleeping places, since our kids won't share a bed, either with each other or one of us.

I also won't stay in a place without a pool slide if we are traveling during swimming weather.

 

[PollyannaMom]

The "Disney Bubble" is important to us - not having to drive, etc. I want to feel like I am "at Disney" even when I'm not at the park. And I like the perks of staying on site.

Theming is our next consideration. We tend to favor the spread-out resorts with pretty landscaping. For our recent trip, we chose CBR for the tropical feel - perfect for getting out of the snow! In the past, we've loved POR as well.

We do enjoy trying out different resorts, and hope to keep doing so. (I love the "Golden Pillow" idea!)

 

[Sarahbelle341]

Budget, theme, and proximity from room to parking lot. We usually eat in the parks and not at our resort and find food courts a bit noisy and chaotic so restaurant choices don't matter. We drive to Disney and use our car so transportation options don't matter much to us. We like to be able to walk right out of our room to our car. So for us this means moderates and values with a room closer to the parking lot. We enjoyed POP just as much as POR in fact I think our room at POP was actually closer to the food court. Only thing I wish is that values would put in a murphy bed at least in the king rooms. We have a king at home and like a king on vacation too and only have one child so a king with a murphy bed it perfect for us.

 

[Melemonie]

Pool, pool, pool. We take a break from the parks every day to swim and then swim again in the evening. We love the look and layout of the main pool at the CBR, especially the zero-entry access and the fenced-in kids area is awesome. This April we're staying at the AoA and BC and the pools were the deciding factor.

 

[loves to dive]

It's according to if I'm going solo and if I'm going for something specific (i.e. F&W, F&G, Just to get away from DH, etc). When going solo I enjoy split stays since I get to experience different resorts and I spend less time at the parks and more time at the resort when solo so the grounds are important. If going with son and DIL, location is important. Epcot and the studio are our favorite parks and my son doesn't do well on buses so the Epcot resorts work best. The only bus he has to ride then is one to AK. I don't like the values and doesn't matter if I'm going solo or with family, we don't do commando, we like to park hop and we always plan one day to just hang around the resort. I need one that is kind of spread out so I can jog in the morning (or as I get older that is turning into a power walk) and has little nooks and crannies I can sit and relax at and the small private pools are important. We never use the main pools, I like to relax, have an adult beverage and not have to worry about kids (I tend to watch other people's kids and get nervous if I see one unattended).

 

[mla2177]

Bussing is important to us. We try to choose resorts that don't make multiple stops.

Which resorts make multiple stops?

 

[dansdad]

Which resorts make multiple stops?

CBR
CSR
POR
OKW
SSR
POFQ (only when sharing with POR)
The All Stars (only when they share)