where should family of 5 stay?

[kellyandkids]

I am new at this board, but I have seen all your helpful advice, so please advise. My family of 5 (me, DH, 2 DS 17 and 14, and DD 10) will be going to DW in early May for 5 nights. We plan on doing all the parks, TL, and DQ. We stayed years ago at one of the cabins in Fort W. The bus system was awful then. We have also stayed offsite, but we really don't want to drive around the parks this time. Can't afford a villa or the deluxe rooms at WL or AKL. Where should we stay? I THINK I have narrowed it down to BWI, Poly, or Dolphin. Transportation and price are my biggest concerns.

 

[disneyforme33]

We have 3 kids as well. My personal favorite is definitely the Polynesian. I love being on the monorail. I love the tropical decor. It is a nice escape when we take a break from the parks. My kids love the pool and the water slide. I don't like to stay anywhere else.

 

[woody5]

It will be cheaper to get two rooms at a moderate or value resort. You will then have 4 beds, 2 tv's, and two bathrooms. With kids the age of yours I would think that would be a great plus. We too are a family of five. We get two rooms at a moderate. Since our kids are under 17 they will guarantee connecting rooms.

 

[kellyandkids]

Thanks for the info! I had heard that they would not guarantee connecting rooms. But that is good news. I am still worried that we will eat up too much of our time using the bus system from any of the All Stars resorts as compared to say the convenience of the Poly. Is it really not as bad as I am imagining?

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Out of your choices I would take the Poly. Our room there seemed a lot bigger than our room at the BWI. Plus I just love the Poly and am dying to go back again. We loved the theme, the volcano pool, the monorail, the restaurants are great, the torches at night, ahhhhh....

 

[eeyore0062]

If you want a moderate, the only one would be PO-R, Alligator Bayou. If you want a deluxe, then you can stay at the Yacht and Beach Club, the Boardwalk, the Contemporary, the Polynesian or the Grand Floridian.

Have a great time!

 

[Amy&Dan]

Have only been to WDW once so I am no expert but here goes! We thought the transportation from All Star Movies was fine. We were there in October of last year and the crowds were heavier than usual for that time of year due to the hurricanes rescheduling people. They were great for AK especially since they are so close. The only time I really was not happy was one night as we left MK. It was raining and we waited about 30 minutes. Wishes had just ended and it was pouring (started just at the end of fireworks) so nobody was lingering in the parks that was for sure! It seemed like about a million people all ran out to the buses at the same time. If I remember correctly, it takes about 12-15 minutes on the bus to get back and forth from ASMO and MK. That is the longest ride I think When it becomes less busy during the day, the three All Star's will share buses which means if you are Movies you get dropped off last. Still never experienced any problems and even that 30 minute wait didn't seem too bad. We really liked All Star Movies. We have two kids, aged 8 & 10 and when they get old will probably do two rooms since DD already spends too much time getting ready! We would love to stay Deluxe but would rather do value and go more often.

 

[MNmom]

We are trying very hard to decide between Poly concierge and POP!!!!

I know that the POP is not a deluxe...but the thought of having 2 bedrooms (one king and 2 double), 2 bathrooms and 2 televisions is very hard to pass up. I have also heard that the POP has direct bus service and doesn't share with any other resorts.

I would love to stay at the POLY....but....the thought of all 5 of us in one room with my son on the wicker couch, one BR and one TV is very hard. Also, last year my DD and I tried to get from DTD to POLY and it took almost 45 minutes. 15 minute wait for bus plus stops at Contemp. and GF. We almost missed our Ohana dinner.

I am sooooo confused. What are your thoughts about all 5 in one room???

MNmom

 

[Deb & Bill]

We have had five in a Polynesian room - there were two queen sized beds and one twin sized day bed. It was the two of us, our two nieces (9 and 11) and our son, who was four at the time. It really was pretty comfortable, plus we had a lagoon view with a view of the MK and Castle.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

We stay at GF and have no problem with 5 in a room. I've also stayed at the Poly with 5 in a room no problem. If you're worried about transportation I would definitely pick one of the monorail resorts.

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Pop Century definitely has the best bus service on property. (in my opinion) They never share with other resorts, and they keep the buses coming in and out there continuously. I was very impressed with that. We have suffered horrible bus nightmares at GF, Poly, WL, YC, etc, so if we stay deluxe we always rent a car now. Sounds silly I know, but when you have two small children the bus wait times are torture. And many times we didn't have a seat which I think is really unsafe with infants and toddlers. Heck, everytime a bus comes to the GF it's already full. And over at the boardwalk area you are always sharing. Anyway, off my soapbox, it's just my humble opinion.

 

[jjohnson]

It will be cheaper to get two rooms at a moderate or value resort. You will then have 4 beds, 2 tv's, and two bathrooms. With kids the age of yours I would think that would be a great plus. We too are a family of five. We get two rooms at a moderate. Since our kids are under 17 they will guarantee connecting rooms.

Am I missing something? I had looked at prices at the mods & I thought the room rack rate was $149. Two rooms would be the same as the Poly. Right?

 

[tar heel]

Taking a bus from any resort other than FW is much easier since you only have to get one.

With older kids like you have, I would definitely go with an Epcot resort. On your list, that would be Swan/Dolphin or BWI.

A question, though. If you're considering BWI, why are you not considering YC/BC? Price is the same, but pool is so much better. In addition, the daybed is big enough for an adult instead of a mini one. My family (kids 9, 15 and 19 last trip) have a strong preference for YC/BC over Poly BTW. Why? Location (we love Epcot and MGM), outstanding pool slide and all those hot tubs.

If you decide to do two rooms, go moderate if you can possibly swing it.

 

[kellyandkids]

You all have been MOST informative. I had decided on Poly last night, but after reading today's posts I am not sure. The confirmation that POP has its OWN bus certainly appeals to my concern about transportation. Tar heel, I had just liked the theming of BWI over YC/BC but your kids' ages look very much like mine- and that counts. I will consider it. Still undecided!

 

[Dopey's twin Dippy]

we have only stayed at the all stars, and off site 2 times. this summer me, dh, dd15 and 2 friends stayed at the Music. It was great having 2 rooms, obviously girls need SPACE....... we went near the end of Aug, we also had AAA price. i think you would be fine at value, we have not stayed at the Mod. , buses run ALL the time, even if its crowded. The food court has ANYTHING the kids could want. We have always had a GREAT time. we also like Movies. This summer we also asked for connecting rooms. We made sure when we checked in , that we asked again, they were very NICE and we got conn. rooms. plus it was nice cause husband likes to fall asleep earlier than the rest of us, so we would go out if he diddnt want to. Also the 2 BATHROOMS were GREAT. no matter where you stay, im sure you all will have a great time.

 

[MNmom]

Boy...last night I was totally set for the Poly concierge after looking at Tikiman's website.....very cool

But now I am back to the 2 rooms at the POP with better bus service.

Last year, Aug 28--Sept.3rd we really noticed how they decreased the number of busses on the routes since it was the beginning of value season. We are going this Aug. 28th again and I really don't want to. We have DD(12), DD(8) and DS(5) but the one with the least amount of patience waiting and waiting for the bus is my DH

This is soooo confusing!!

MNmom

 

[Momto8]

Taking a bus from any resort other than FW is much easier since you only have to get one.

With older kids like you have, I would definitely go with an Epcot resort. On your list, that would be Swan/Dolphin or BWI.

A question, though. If you're considering BWI, why are you not considering YC/BC? Price is the same, but pool is so much better. In addition, the daybed is big enough for an adult instead of a mini one. My family (kids 9, 15 and 19 last trip) have a strong preference for YC/BC over Poly BTW. Why? Location (we love Epcot and MGM), outstanding pool slide and all those hot tubs.

If you decide to do two rooms, go moderate if you can possibly swing it.

I agree. With older kids, I also prefer the Epcot resorts over the MK resorts because of the location. If your kids were younger, I would also go with the Poly as it's a monorail resort and much closer to MK. At the Epcot resorts, you can take a boat to MGM & Epcot or walk, though, it is quicker to walk to Epcot than take a boat. MGM is a little further and would rather take the boat. The downside is the rooms are smaller than at the Poly.

If you decide with an Epcot resort, I would go with YC/BC, because the day bed at BWI is much smaller than at YC/BC. Your 14yo will probably be too tall to fit on it. The pool is also much better for teens at YC/BC as it's like a mini water park. The pool at BW has a cool slide, but the rest is just a regular pool.

That being said, I think I would still rather go with 2 rooms at a moderate. It is so much better when you have 2 bathrooms and 2 TVs and more room to spread out. I know my 2 teen DDs take forever getting ready in the morning and my choice would be 2 rooms at a moderate. JMHO.

Good luck with whatever you decide!