What Resort? (DD w/autism)

[Disneylvr]

Last year when DD was 3 we stayed at the Contemporary and it worked out great. She loves the monorail and we appreciated the ease of getting to and from the MK and Epcot. We drove to the other parks. She also loves the trams! The only problem with our trip last year was that it was hot and very crowded so we had to make frequent use of our GAC. We went Memorial Day week. Next year we plan to go in early to mid-May when it is a little less crowded and the school year will be winding down so we don't mind pulling her out of school. DD is a sensory seeker for the most part (she loves movement and sounds) although we found out last year we cannot take her to Spectromagic or view fireworks outdoors at a close distance. She is also a VERY picky eater and mostly survived on crackers, milk, bread and applesauce last trip. Let me just say we had the best dining experience at the Kona Cafe! They were very accomodating to us and our daughter's disability. I think that is the only place she ate a REAL meal.

We hope to save enough for the All Star family suites, a deluxe resort or maybe DVC accomodations. What resort would you choose: Polynesian, (Beach Club Villas, Old Key West, Wilderness Lodge Villas or the family suites at All Star Music? MY first choice would be the Poly but I want our final decision to be based on what is best for DD

And in the case we cannot afford the above what do you consider to be the best moderate resort for our daughter's disability?

 

[OneLittleSpark]

I'm afraid I've not stayed in any of the resorts you've listed (yet), but just thought I'd throw in a suggestion. Have you considered renting a DVC booking though a member, over on the DVC boards on this forum? It can work out cheaper than a moderate (for a studio), and they look very nice. I'm going to be renting at OKW for my visit in September, so I can always let you know how that went when we get back.

You can use the points calculator ( http://www.wdwinfo.com/resort/dvcpoint.cfm ) to work out how many points you'd need for your desired dates, resort and room type, then reckon on between $10 and $12 per point. The people over on the DVC boards can fill you in on all the details much better than I can.

Good luck and have a great trip wherever you end up staying!

 

[Red Wings Fan]

The Poly would be a great choice given the budget. Sounds like everything your DD would love. My DS (4) is also autistic and we had the same issues with food. Aside from the occassional piece of chicken or hot dog, I think he survived on French Fries.

As for the DVCs and villas, the Beach Club villas are probably best when it comes to sensory seekers (plus there's the Yachtsman Steakhouse....yum). The others have a more laid back atmosphere and may seem a little underwhelming for her.

I may be biased, but I think the French Quarter is the best moderate. It's large enough for comfort, yet small enough to be manageable. The food court won't "theme" your DD out of too many choices (i.e. CS with the mexican foods).

How is your DD on the busses? My DS didn't want to get off them. However, we had a real issue with the bigger boats to the MK. Oddly enough, I took him out on the little boat rentals and he loved it.

Anyway...starting to ramble here. Hope it help s a little.

 

[Disneylvr]

I think DD might have issues with buses IF they are really crowded. I know for sure she couldn't stand on a bus without serious issues. Last year on the monorail she could at least stay in her stroller if the monorail was too crowded to get a seat. That isn't possible on the buses which is why we drive to the other parks. At age 5 she is probably going to be too big for the stroller we have but it is a must have for parks as she is an elopement risk AND she doesn't have the stamina to trek through a theme park for very long. Which reminds me, I need to start looking for a bigger stroller. Any recommendations?

 

[Dis1978]

We have just come back from WDW with our Asperger teen and in the past we have stayed at most of the disney resorts, some we have liked and some have not been so good.

My son loves the Polynesian and thought it was his favorite hotel until this year when we stayed in Saratoga Springs and OKW. He absolutely adored staying in a vacation club property. There is just no comparison even with the deluxe resorts. When it comes down to it a hotel room, however grand the hotel, is still just a smallish to moderate sized room.

As I know only too well being stuck in just one room with an autistic child who is having a meltdown is no vacation. There's just no getting away from it, no space for either the parents, the autistic kid or the other siblings. We have all stayed in just one room many times before and had to suffer the consequences but this time I knew that it would just be too hard. We decided to splash out and pay for a villa at the vacation club. It was expensive although we did get a good discount from our AP. However, it was so worthwhile and we had a brilliant time.

I would not want to stay in a regular hotel room again next time we go. Both vacation resorts were good but OKW was fantastic. It was great having a full kitchen, living room, large bedrooms, 2 baths, shower, washing machine etc. It is especially useful with an autistic child to be able to make the food they like to eat and have the space for them to chill out. Even having the dvd player in the living room was very useful.
I don't know about you but we usually come back from WDW feeling happy but somewhat exhausted. However, this time we had the most relaxing time, in spite of our DS having the usual autistic problems that can make life more than a bit interesting!
So I would suggest OKW ( but get a villa away from the golf course because they were cutting the grass at 6 a.m. in the dark with a ridiculously loud industrial mower!). Second choice Saratoga or Beach club( BC is very difficult to get in though).
However, if you do want a hotel room then I don't think I could recommend Port Orleans at the moment. I have seen many bad reviews recently and also see quite scary bed bug thread from last week on the DIS. Also, stay well clear from AKL however deeply discounted the rates are. Their tiny dark rooms and dreadful customer service are not what anyone needs but particularly bad for anyone on the spectrum.There is major building work there which is very noisy and the room they showed us to was dirty with stained sheets and food on the floor.

We have stayed at Yacht and Beach club lots of times and enjoyed it. It's also great for walking up to EPCOT. WL is nice and we have always enjoyed CBR. Although this has also had some bad reports for being a bit dated now.
We had a great few nights at Universal's Royal Pacific this time too. It is so lovely there, very much like the Polynesian.
We didn't much like CSR, too much like a convention centre, but the rooms were ok.
The fact is that there are so many challenges for an autistic child and their parents on vacation. Each day is difficult anyway and so I would suggest you might as well make life as easy as possible and go for the space and flexibility of vacation club resorts. if you would like more info please message me.

 

[bopper]

Seems to me if you can afford it then the Poly sounds like a good bet. The resort is on the monorail, you can watch the fireworks from afar, and you can eat at Kona cafe!

 

[Disneylvr]

I hope we can afford deluxe or DVC accomodations (although I now realize renting points might be an option) but the reality is we might not be able to. We have started a vacation fund and are saving like crazy.

DD is an only child and thankfully she does not have frequent meltdowns. We have gotten really good at prediction and are able to avoid them most of the time. But she did have 2 really bad ones last year in WDW. We woke her from a nap to make a reservation at Chef Mickey's. BIG MISTAKE. The other one was at Spectromagic although we tried watching it from a bit of a distance. She didn't have a meltdown at the fireworks but did hide on daddy's shoulder the whole time.

DH and I have stayed at many Disney resorts, most of them before DD was born. She has only stayed in POR when she was 13 months old and before her diagnosis and the Contemporary last year post diagnosis.

 

[Nik's Mom]

We have an 8 year old autistic ds and a 5 year old going through the diagnosis process. We've stayed at WL, Poly and AKL with our sons. They have done well at all 3! Poly would probably be best if your dd loves the monorail, since you can take it to 2 parks. But for the other 2 parks, you would need to take a bus or rent a car.

 

[BlondeAlligator]

I have stayed at OKW and the Poly with my autistic DD (almost age 5)...she loved both of them. OKW was nice because we had a kitchen & I could keep a lot of her food there & make meals to take with us in a Thermos that I knoew she would eat. She is also a very picky eater & gets REALLY crabby if she doesn't eat well. OKW is very quiet and peaceful which was nice, but it's a huge property & unless you rent a car (which I did & highly recommend...no waiting for buses, you park right outside your room, very easy!) you'll be stuck on the bus.

On the other hand, the Poly is wonderful because it has a great pool, lots of beautiful sights and smells, can watch fireworks from the beach without the horrifying noises (she hates the booms), monorail service to MK (her fav park), rooms are larger than most on property...so many reasons. That is why I chose it for our next trip in 4 weeks...

We rented points to stay at OKW and got our most recent Poly package on Travelocity for a pretty good price. If you can swing it, I would stay at the Poly. All rooms have fridges now, and there's a microwave at Capt. Cooks if you need some control over her meals like I do. You can always rent a car & stop at a grocery store, too, and that way you could avoid buses for the other parks as well.

Let me know if I can answer any other specific questions about either resort for you.

 

[Disneylvr]

We will most likely be driving down so we'll have a car. If we do fly we will most definitely be renting a car. Even before DD we always stopped by the grocery store to pick up our favorite snacks and such. With our DD it is necessity to have some of her favorite foods with us in the room. I am anxious to read about your Poly experience when you get back!!!

 

[BlondeAlligator]

The first time we went to WDW with our DD was when we stayed at the Poly. It was our first vacation with her (other than to a relatives house) and everything was perfect! She loved the room & the resort itself...she really loved the pool. It has zero-depth entry so even though she can't swim she was able to be pretty independent in the pool & walk in on her own to a certain depth. I love watching the fireworks from the beach...we did that almost every night & she was able to enjoy them for the first time in her life! The rooms had not been renovated at that point, so I am anxious to see how nice they are now, but with the addition of the fridge, I know it'll be even nicer than before. We aren't renting a car this time, but we are taking a towncar from the airport & I know DD will be fine on the monorail & buses. I will miss the car, but the towncar service does a grocery stop & since it's just me, DD & my Mom this trip (DH has to work ) it didn't seem to make sense to rent, esp. since MK is DD's fav park & we'll be right there.

I'll try to remember to post here or pm you when we get back & let you know how it goes!

 

[SueM in MN]

I don't have time to write much, but wanted to respond to the stroller question.
You should be able to get a special needs stroller paid for by insurance with a doctor's prescription. You may not need it for 'day to day' living, but having one becomes a safety issue on outings and things like trips to WDW.

A good source for special needs strollers is adaptivemall.com. Even if you don't buy one from there, it's a good place to compare features/options.

 

[minkydog]

we stayed at the Poly at New Years and we'd go back in a second. DS12 is my low-functioning autistic son. He was relaxed and very interested in the landscaping--he is currently enamored of geometric figures, so the roof-lines 'and tiki things really captured him. You can't beat the monorail. Christian has never like fireworks, but we found he could tolerate them at the Poly--all color, no sound. Even though the pool was freezing then, he couldn't wait to get in. It was loud and wet--meets all his requirements.

Go with the Poly.

 

[stemikger]

I didn't read all the replies, but my newphew has aspurgers (not sure of the spelling) and I don't think he would do well on the buses.

The most important thing for you guys would be convience to and from the hotel and I think a monorail resort would be the best way to go.

I would stay away from the value resorts as they are too crowded and the wait for buses might be to long for DD.
Also food choices might be better at the deluxe resorts.

Good Luck.