Which resort during Christmas season, help me choose!

[Alexsandra]

Hi there, I need help from all you experts out there.
I have gone to WDW once in Feb (stayed at CSR) and once in Sept. (stayed at POFQ). I loved both resorts but preferred POFQ. I walked over to POR and loved the grounds and food court there.

SO now I am going back on Dec. 10th to the 17th. I was either looking to stay at POR, WL, or AK. (I would have rather stayed at Poly or YC but can't afford it, maybe next time). I wanted to know if any of these resorts are decorated for Christmas and if any have special activities?

I wanted to stay in the AB section at POR but now there is only Royal Rooms water or river view left. I have two boys DS5, DS2 so the whole princess thing is not that appealing to us. It is also more expensive cause I need to pay for a water, river view. However, the resort is just beautiful and there is a boat to DTD.

WL reminds me of home (I'm Canadian). It looks like the lodges I've stayed at in Banff. The only concern is the rooms look dark and outdated. How are the beds? ARe there good food choices? How is transportation to the parks? It would be fun to take a boat to MK.

AK is beautiful however the bus transportation always seems full. The food choices are great if I could only eat them. I have a food allergy to star anise (found in Garam Masala). When I ate at Boma's last time I could hardly touch the buffet. The chef needed to prepare a special dish for me and I was disappointed that I could not try the great flavours of Africa.

POR is still $1000 cheeper than WL and AK so I don't know which to choose.
Any help will be greatly appreciated!

 

[CanadianPaco]

Hello to a fellow Cannuck! Planning a Christmas trip is wonderful! Congrats!

Of the hotels you listed we have only stayed at POFQ and are staying at AKL next week ! I would choose WK because it's the one I haven't yet tried and and I believe it has had a refurb... I would check out the resort threads for each and read up! Good luck choosing!!

 

[MMS1125]

IMO WL is the most beautifully decorated at Christmas. If you want to stay deluxe it's going to be your cheapest option. POR is a nice moderate so if you choose that it's a nice resort. Just decide if the 1k is worth it to you to splurge on a deluxe or if you'd be happy at POR

 

[NHKristy76]

I think the WL is by FAR the best resort at Christmas.

I couldn't disagree more about your description of it being "dark and outdated"... Couldn't be further from reality in my opinion!

We are going to the BC in a few days, have ASMovies booked in January and I'm STILL trying to convince my husband to go down for a quick trip in December so I can enjoy the WL at Christmas time!

 

[mickeynut1]

Out of your 3 choices, we have stayed at WL and AKL and WL would be my choice without hesitation. All of the resorts decorate for the holidays, but the WL is just gorgeous and has a warm, cozy feeling the minute you step into the lobby. The lobby is beautiful with the huge fireplace in the middle and it's nice to sit in a rocking chair and take in everything going on around you . We've never had any trouble with the buses, but having the boat for going to MK is great. The boat is also convenient for going to the CR where we like to hop on the monorail and visit the Poly and GF. Good luck deciding, although I'm sure you'll have a great trip no matter which resort you choose as Disney at Christmas time is amazing .

 

[Alexsandra]

I think the WL is by FAR the best resort at Christmas.

I couldn't disagree more about your description of it being "dark and outdated"... Couldn't be further from reality in my opinion!

We are going to the BC in a few days, have ASMovies booked in January and I'm STILL trying to convince my husband to go down for a quick trip in December so I can enjoy the WL at Christmas time!

It looks dark and outdated by the pictures but sometimes pictures are misleading. Thanks for the clarification.
Good luck with the Dec. trip convincing
I convinced my husband to go in Dec. instead of March! It worked

 

[Alabama Minnie]

Xmas - WL! It is just beautiful then. It also has had a refurb. recently.

 

[Alexsandra]

Out of your 3 choices, we have stayed at WL and AKL and WL would be my choice without hesitation. All of the resorts decorate for the holidays, but the WL is just gorgeous and has a warm, cozy feeling the minute you step into the lobby. The lobby is beautiful with the huge fireplace in the middle and it's nice to sit in a rocking chair and take in everything going on around you . We've never had any trouble with the buses, but having the boat for going to MK is great. The boat is also convenient for going to the CR where we like to hop on the monorail and visit the Poly and GF. Good luck deciding, although I'm sure you'll have a great trip no matter which resort you choose as Disney at Christmas time is amazing .

I did not know CR was so close. That is an extra bonus.
Choosing and planning is half the fun but boy does it give me a headache! The problem is too many choices

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

It was my dream to stay at the WL during the Christmas season and we did it in 2009. It was so stunningly beautiful that I could not take my eyes off the HUGE tree anytime we walked through the lobby. It was amazing. We had a standard room but we were on the 6th floor and could see Wishes from our balcony.

The only thing I did not like about WL was sharing buses with FW. We used the boat to MK and drove to the other parks.

 

[Alexsandra]

Hello to a fellow Cannuck! Planning a Christmas trip is wonderful! Congrats!

Of the hotels you listed we have only stayed at POFQ and are staying at AKL next week ! I would choose WK because it's the one I haven't yet tried and and I believe it has had a refurb... I would check out the resort threads for each and read up! Good luck choosing!!

Love your name by the way! I do love changing resorts each time I visit. I'm going to check out the refurbs, thanks for the info.

 

[Alexsandra]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Finally we decided to go with POR. We booked a Royal room with river view and asked for a corner room, close to bridge, in oak Manor. I really was tempted by WL but for the 1,000$ i save by staying at the moderate, I decided to put that amount towards another trip in March or June. Cheers,