Which resort if you could chose any..

[Alijaney]

If you could stay in any of the hotels within WDW which would you chose?

Imagine money being no object and having a dd5 and ds2.... I am blinded by so much choice... HELP please?

we originally liked the look of AKL but then found out it was bus transport not monorail etc (not great with little ones?) and no character breakfast etc?

Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.

 

[Aliceacc]

I vote for any of the monorail resorts.

In fact, with a 2 year old, I think I vote for the Contemporary... you can WALK him home from the Magic Kingdom when he's had enough.

 

[AppleSister1]

If you are strictly looking for monorail resorts, which would make sense if you feel like you'll spend most of your time at MK because of the ages of DS and DD, your choices are Poly, GF, and Contemporary. Of the three, I've only stayed at GF, which would be my first choice. But with the kiddos, Poly might be more in keeping with something THEY would enjoy.

BUT....I would vote for the Beach Club. True, you must still take a bus to MK and AK, but you can walk to Epcot and boat or walk to the Studios. The pool is PHENOMENAL, there are TONS of restaurant and recreation choices, and it's a great resort. If money isn't an object, you can go for Park Hopping, which will allow you to simply stroll into Epcot for meals, for fireworks, etc.


My two nephews have been staying there since they were babies. Now that they are 6 and 8, we have suggested trying other resorts....but they always want to stay at "our hotel."

My 2 cents....as you can see by my sig, I'm a Yacht/Beach fan!

 

[minnie61650]

....If you could stay in any of the hotels within WDW which would you chose?

Imagine money being no object and having a dd5 and ds2.... I am blinded by so much choice... HELP please? .......

First I will modestly say ( please note I am trying to nor do I want it to appear that I am bragging) that money is no object to us. We are very fortunate.

I have stayed at all levels of Disney Resorts. My favorite Disney owned resort is All Star Music.

Here are a few reasons :



1. I can book a preferred room location.
The way All Star Music is laid out it "seems" smaller than most of the other Disney resorts. If I stay in a preferred building i only see the Calypso and Jazz builings on the way to to and from the main pool and the bus stop and food court. Since I stay in preferred room I know I am going to be close to the food court, bus stop, & main pool.

2. I enjoy the theming at the All Stars. All Star Music is also is the quietest of the values. Generally less people stay there and there are more seniors and couples and less young children because children enjoy the themes of the other values more.

3. The bus service at the All Star Music is very good. Since I use an ECV good bus transportation is essential.

4. The entry at the values and Mods are much more Handicap friendly.
I am able to get in and out of my All Star room unassisted. This way my husband can go and play a round of golf and know I can leave my room to relax by the pool if I choose.
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All Star Music is my favorite resort. It tends to be the quietest of all the values.


All Star Music just underwent a refurbishment of all of the rooms and was completed in June 2007.


Here is a website with photos of the newly refurbished rooms at All Star Music.

Look at the Jazz Inn section with new posted:

http://allearsnet.com/acc/g_asmu.htm




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DH and I enjoy the landscaping and peacefulness of All Star Music.
We enjoy relaxing by the pool (there are plenty of chairs and lounges), and the beautiful lighting at the resort by night.

I have never had the unfortunate experience of running into the any of the large
groups of teens who sometimes stay at the values on school trips.
As long as you can avoid those large groups I do not think Noise will be an issue.

*HINT if you close your bathroom door at night you might not even hear the turbo toilets.
I close my bathroom door and I don't hear them.
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I love The All Star Resorts.

I am 56 years old and travel several times a yearfor pleasure. I often stay at 3and 4 star and sometimes a 5 star hotels and motels.
So the deluxe and mod resorts are just another hotel/motel to me.
Staying at an All Star is like being in the heart of the Magic and that is where I want to be.

All Star Music is my favorite. It is quieter because more couples stay there. I love staying at the Calypso building. It is closer to the pool, food court and bus stop.

Here is a site with a map of All Star Sports and All Star Music.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmap.htm
Scroll down. All Star Music is at the bottom of the page.
The Calypso buildings at All Star Music are #1 and #10 are nearest to the food court and bus stop.

The Calypso pool at ASMu has Donald Duck.

The buses are wonderful.

Bus rides are quite short from the ALL Stars according to PassPorter.com

All Star Buses-CBR buses---POPbuses--PO buses--- Contemporary
MK 20 min---- 20 min-----25 min------10 min---20 min(mono)
Epcot 10 min-- 15 min-----20 min------10 min---15 min
MGM 10 min----12 min-----15 min------15 min---20min
AK 10 min------20min-------15 min----15 min---20 min
DTD 15 min----20 min------20 min-----15 min---35 min

It only takes 10 minutes to get to Epcot, MGM and AK from All Stars.
MK is 20 min away. That's the same amount of time it takes on the monorail from the Contemporary.

A WORD ABOUT BUS SHARING

To me Bus Sharing at the All Stars is really a non issue.

In the mornings during Park opening hours each All Star usually has a dedicated bus.
During mid day it is usually just our stop and maybe one more on the way to the parks. On the way back sometimes it is all 3 but often Sports and Movies share and Music has it's own bus back. Each of the All Stars usually has it's own dedicated bus back from the MK.
That is a big plus. It seems like the Music bus stop usually has the shortest of the three All Star bus lines.

I guess some people who stay at POP see all 3 All Star names on the return sign of our bus stop when they head to the POP bus stop and think All Stars also has 3 stops on the way to the park.
(Even when we stop at another AS resort to load up it has not taken more than 5 minutes and we are on our way!)

The pools at The All Stars are very kid friendly.

When staying at the All Stars you can use any of the All Star pools.That means 3 main pools ,3 quiet pools and 3 kiddie pools to chose from.

The All Star Movie Fantasia pool has Mickey.

The Calypso pool at ASMU has Donald Duck.

And the Surfs up pool at All Star Sports has giant surf boards.

Here are a few pool photos.

All Star Sports pool.

All Star Music Donald pool.

All Star Movies Mickey Pool.

I have visited WDW more than a dozen times with the 1st time in Oct. 1971. It was brand new. I've stayed at FW, Disney Inn, a few the of Hotels on hotel Blvd., CBR and the towers at the Contemporary. I got to see the MK from my balcony at the Contemporary and I'm happy I got to experience it once. I just prefer the All Star Resorts.
The theming is pure Disney.

My last 6 visits have been at The All Stars and during the fall of 2005 when we took dd,dsil, and our grandson age 3(at the time) for 8 nights we stayed at the All Stars Music. I thought about AKL and even though we can well afford AKL I just wanted Alex to experience the Disney Magic at the All Stars on his first visit.
Where else can one find Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse at the pool?

Have fun at Disney wherever you choose to stay!

 

[minmate]

It's nice to read PP Linda's post! I have stayed at both ends of the Disney spectrum (but curiously not at any of the moderates).
I liked them both for different reasons. I liked Pop Century for the theming. The kids LOVED it for that too. (my kids were between 2-6 when we last stayed there.)

We liked the Grand Floridian because it had the convenience of monorail, the hot tubs to relax in at night after a long day of walking around parks, the balcony, and ability to watch the fireworks over the castle and hear the music piped in for the nights we weren't in the parks (it rained a few nights we were there and with little ones that didn't want to be stuck in the rain and easily tired -- being able to see the fireworks like this was a great compromise)

However, you asked if money were no object -- my answer is the Poly. I love the beach, the volcano pool. O'Hana's has a fun character breakfast and the whole vibe is relaxed and tropical - I love tropical. Plus it has the monorail.
We've eaten at Kona Cafe and liked their food too. Though the theming isn't as "over the top Disney" as the all-stars or Pop, the Poly theming is still nice - my kids liked it. They really like the beach too.

 

[ekmom]

I'd try Poly. So many here rave about it and I'd really like to give it a try! Maybe someday if I can get there during value season.

 

[sarose]

I just got back from going in Jan. We stayed at Coronado. If Money was no object? I still agree w/what posters say about the value resort. I think I would pick the POP next time because of DS and it is so kid friendly. Or a monorail resort. DS and I ate at the Poly and got on the monorail to go to Epcot. It sure was nice.

Now I find the post on the Beach club interesting. I had no knowledge that you could walk to Epcot! The idea of eating there is cool!

Coronado is beautiful. DH had a convention so that is why we were there. I want to experience other resorts though just because!

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

Personally, I would choose an MK View room at CR. We stayed in one in December and I didn't want to leave. I loved being able to hop on the monorail to visit other resorts, and walking to MK. And that View, there aren't words that can explain that view. especially when the castle had the lights on it. I like for my room to be completely dark when I sleep, but that view, I kept the curtains open all night and they didn't cut off the castle light until sometime early in the morning. it was incredible. That was a once in a lifetime stay for me and boy I wouldn't trade it for The World, pardon the pun.

My mom won't say it, but I know she would love to stay at the GF, but that is really out of the question because of the price. If money was no object, I would book a stay there.

Actually my goal is to stay at every WDW Resort on property, including SOG (mom is Retired DoD).

Suzanne

 

[ihearttink]

I vote BC. We will be there again in Sept. and can't wait. DH & I love to be able to just walk over to Epcot for lunch, dinner,anytime we like and not have to wait for a bus to do so. The pool is outstanding. At night we love to walk around the boardwalk. I just love this area as a whole, and stay at any of the resorts here. We have stayed at the BW and liked it a lot, but BC is just so appealing to us.

 

[DrmWvr1299]

I vote Yacht Club. We love Epcot and the location can't be beat (I know that has been said hundreds of times...but it is true. Location cannot be beat

 

[parrothead928]

Yacht Club!!!!! For the moderate, Coronado Spring. But, definitely, the YACHT CLUB!!!!!!

The Grand Californian is nice, but DO NOT expect the same type of treatment or magic that you receive at Walt Disney World. It just isn't there!!!! We went the first week of June in 2007. There is only one gift shop in the Resort, and if you wish to buy a soda, you have to ask for it because they prefer not to stock them on the shelves. The drinks are in the stock room. AND...if you want something after 9:00pm, you will have to go to Downtown Disney because the Grand Californian does not have a cafe like the Grand Floridian, Contemporary, Wilderness Lodge or Polynesian that has late hours or is open 24 hours. I know this resort is right next to the parks, but the parks close early in June due to Grad night and guests are left high and dry!!!!
Needless to say, even though the resort was beautiful, the CM and the Pixie Dust was not!!!!!

 

[heatherlynn444]

i vote GF or Poly. Gf is my favorite so it wins for us. on the monorail, 2 good pools one with a slide and zero entry, hot tub for unwinding after a long day in the parks, bigger rooms than a lot of the other hotels, I love the theming, the beautiful lobby, 1900 park fare character breakfast and dinner is in the lobby, GF cafe and narcoossees are two of my fav restaurants, teh list goes on and on! good luck in your decision

 

[jenjersnap]

When are you planning on going? How important is a themed pool?

With kids that age, I think a monorail resort is best. Any of them would be great. The Poly is our favorite WDW resort.

If pool theming isn't important to you, then a MK view Contemporary tower room would be great. (I was just there two weeks ago and it hit me all over again how depressing CR's pool - and the entire bayside - is, no landscaping just endless concrete pavers and a plain rectangle of a pool.) Being able to walk back to the room when you need to is a great advantage, IMO, and the view is the best available. Rooms are huge too.

I'm sure you can't go wrong at the Grand Floridian either!

I love the Epcot area resorts. BC is our second favorite resort, but transportation to MK is a major issue for us. Buses share with the other resorts. Save it for when the kids are a bit older and the focus of your trip is no longer MK, IMO!

Good luck choosing.

 

[Goofyz3girls]

Hands down its the Beach or Yacht Club.Its deluxe without being stuffy and the location is ideal.The pool (Stormalong Bay) is the best at WDW.If money is no object get a concierge level suite and go to town.Have a magical time.

 

[Disney5Mom]

If money is truly no object,The Grand Floridian is one monorail stop to the MK and of course you can take the little boats across too. Haven't stayed there but we have eaten at several of the restaurants and the pool looks lovely.

 

[Buzz2001]

CSR!! Great food, transportation and pool for the price!

 

[tejasranger]

We just got back and we stayed at POR. It is closest to Epcot. We used the boatride to get to downtown. Riverside lets 5 stay in a room because they have a trundle bed in the Alligator Bayou section. The resort is beautiful.

 

[alldiz]

Since money is no object.....I would pick the poly with a castle view.
happy planning
Kerri

 

[IWISHFORDISNEY]

Money is no object. I would love to try CR CL MK view of course. LOL. that bill would be scary.

 

[mericletwins]

My number one choice would be the Beach Club/Yacht Club for all the reasons previously stated. While staying on the monorail is nice, it gives you easy access to one park, the MK. Staying at the BC/YC gives you very simple access to two parks, DHS and Epcot. You also have the Boardwalk area to check out and the pool would be fabulous for your kids. We have taken our kids seven times and they are 7, 8, and 8. We have never spent most of our time at MK. We have always split our time between all four parks. Easy access to two parks is alot better in my mind than easy access to one. Sometimes when we go to the MK when we are staying at the Beach Club, or returning, we stroll through Epcot from the back entrance to the front entrance and hop the monorail. My kids love to ride the monorail and it is a nice break. On the way back I like to go by Mexico and pick up a margarita or by France and get a chocolate croissant. If money is no object truly, then I would say get a villa at the Beach Club. Being able to wash a load of clothes that have had some things spilled on them by little ones is priceless. Going home with a suitcase full of clean clothes is a dream. Also, we would get some basic groceries delivered for breakfast, snacks, etc. that we knew the kids would like. Yogurt, fruit, juice, bagels, cereal, etc. Also, beer and wine for us along with cheese, crackers, pepperoni etc that the adults could snack on and relax with at night.


If you are set on having a monorail resort I would choose the GF, but I stick to the above and think that BC would be a MUCH better choice.