where to stay?

[cropdocmom]

hi! please help me decide where to stay. we have been many times. never stayed at AK, POLY, or cont tower. we will be driving. 2 adults and 3 kids ages 21, 17 and 13. 2 rooms or villa? want to be comfy. like the location of poly and Cont tower so close to MK and EPCOT, but like the theme of AK. hate the long drives from AK. also, any discounts on these? thanks for the help. planning to stay about 4 or 5 nights. thanks for the help!!! best way to make res? use local travel agent or call disney direct?

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Among the resorts you are thinking about staying at I would go with the Contemporary because all their Tower rooms come with a guaranteed full size balcony, their rooms are among the biggest of the Deluxe Resorts and the walkway to the Magic Kingdom.

As for any discounts here is a link to MouseSavers which is a website that always list whenever WDW is offering Room Only discounts or promotions such as Free Dining.
http://www.mousesavers.com/

Finally whenever we make our WDW reservations we always do it directly with WDW by calling or making them online through their website.

 

[kaligal]

AKL is not the place for everyone, but if you think you'll like it, you'll probably love it. And it isn't a longer drive from AKL to Poly than it is from Poly to AK, kwim? If you are on or very close to Disney property, how close you are to A or B park doesn't matter all that much. We're talking 10 minutes difference at most.

For five people that age, I'd probably get two rooms...or a 2 bed villa, if i were willing to pay Disney prices for that.

I'd actually stay off the Disney property and get a two bed condo for the price of a Disney mod, but I understand people having their hearts set on staying in Disney hotels.

If you want a travel agent, use one that specializes in Disney. The DIS has Dreams Unlimited.

 

[mickeynut1]

We love the MK area, so I would go with either the CR or Poly, with the Poly being my first choice . We love the Poly for it's tropical atmosphere, the volcano pool, and having the beach for watching the fireworks. I can't comment much on the CR as we haven't stayed there (we are booked for our first stay in December), but if that appeals to you more than the Poly as far as theme/decor, then I'd go with that. They both offer very large rooms with plenty of room to spread out. We have stayed at AKL and loved it and although the transportation wasn't bad, we love being closer to the action and a monorail resort fulfills that for us . Good luck deciding as I know how tough it is trying to make a decision with all of the great choices Disney offers .

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I would do either the Poly which I've never stayed at and want to someday or CR which I have.

I enjoyed AKL and would love to go back for a longer stay but it just seems so far from the main areas of Disney that I wouldn't want to do a short stay there again. I was there for only 4 nights and barely got to explore the resort enough.

CR has a hot tub which is nice and the Poly doesn't have one. I think it's about which theme appeals to you more.

As far as who to book with, I normally book my trips myself but you could contact the dreams unlimited travel agency and they could handle it for you.

 

[wdwnut61]

We love the MK area, so I would go with either the CR or Poly, with the Poly being my first choice . We love the Poly for it's tropical atmosphere, the volcano pool, and having the beach for watching the fireworks. I can't comment much on the CR as we haven't stayed there (we are booked for our first stay in December), but if that appeals to you more than the Poly as far as theme/decor, then I'd go with that. They both offer very large rooms with plenty of room to spread out. We have stayed at AKL and loved it and although the transportation wasn't bad, we love being closer to the action and a monorail resort fulfills that for us . Good luck deciding as I know how tough it is trying to make a decision with all of the great choices Disney offers .

Totally agree

We did a split stay one year with CR and AKL and while it was amazing to step onto your balcony and see all the animals I really missed being closer to the action. I also prefer the transporation options with CR and Poly and the larger rooms.

For our family we enjoy going to the parks early then coming back for swimming and relaxing. Then we enjoy a nice dinner and going to MK or Epcot in the evening. Staying at CR or Poly allows us to do this easily and not spend the entire trip traveling.

We used a travel agent our first two trips before I discovered the DIS. Now I much prefer to book my own trips directly with Disney. Good luck and happy planning

 

[francie57]

I would go with a villa since you would have a lot more room and would have the kitchen to keep drinks and snacks and quick breakfast items. I know you talked about CR or Poly - I would go with a villa at BLT or WL if you want to be close to MK. We prefer the Epcot resorts and love both othe BW and BC villas. Our kids are just a little older than yours and they prefer the Epcot resorts much more now. We get the hopper option and usually have our sit-down meal at one of the Epcot countries each night. Our kids like the activities that go on at night and having the easy access to two parks. They actually like going into Epcot for a drink at one of the countries late in the afternoon after pool time. We currently have a 2 bedroom at the BCVs for Aug and have used a AAA discount since it is the only thing available for the timeframe we are going. If you decide on a villa and can't find a discount at all, you could rent points which makes the villas much more affordable.

 

[JVP1]

I would recommend the Poly. We did 2 connecting rooms last time and it was great to have all that space. Poly rooms are fairly large so having two of them was great. It was like having a suite.

Some day I want to stay in a Magic Kingdom view room at the Contemporary.
I think it would be so great to be able to overlook the MK at night

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Will any of your kids be willing to sleep in the same bed? That's really what it boils down to. If they all need to sleep separate then you are going to either need two rooms or a villa. With your kids being older I'd recommend the Epcot resorts. Two rooms at beach club would be ideal. Or a two bedroom villa if you can get it. What month are you going???

 

[earthfaries]

I suggest two rooms ~ adjoining so you're close together if you want. You will definitely get more space that way.

I would also suggest the Polynesian ~ it​

's convenient and beautiful

 

[yaksack]

You mentioned you guys like EPCOT. Seeing you kids are older, perhaps staying at the Beach Club or Board Walk Villas would be better. they are closer to EPCOT.