Which resorts are worth visiting?

[xiaolind]

My family and I are planning on taking some time to visit the other resorts (we are staying at Coronado Springs). We decided that the Animal Kingdom Lodge, Wilderness Lodge, Swan and Dolphin, and Boardwalk Inn are all possibly worth seeing. Are there any you would recommend? Also out of the ones we have chosen what would be your #1 choice? We have never visited any of these before as well.

 

[Wood Nymph]

AKL and WL are #1
The next on my list to see would be Fort Wilderness. Boardwalk is good. We enjoyed touring Art of Animation. It is s really beautiful resort.

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

GF, WL, AKL, and the Poly would be the most fun to visit. The Boardwalk area is AWESOME but the hotel itself you can skip. Swan and Dolphin I would skip. Here's a bit of an overview:

GF: beautiful lobby, live music in the evenings (big band and/or pianist), nice shops (Basin!), great restaurants (love Narcoosee's & 1900 Park Fare also good), beautiful beach, nice views of MK, great place to watch EWP and Wishes.

WL: beautiful lobby, nice grounds with trails, geyser, fun restaurants (love Whispering Canyon), also view of EWP

AKL: beautiful lobby, tons of animal viewing areas, great restaurants (love Boma and Jiko)

Poly: awesome beach, Trader Sam's, live patio music, cute shop, great place for EWP and Wishes, Dole Whip, great restaurants (Ohana and Kona!) Great sushi!

 

[Buzz-Light-Beer]

I remember when I was 10 years old my parents and I visited the Grand Floridian when on vacation and it was really nice. I remember the lobby being beautiful.

Also out of the resorts you listed I would see the Wilderness Lodge as my top choice.

 

[mickeynut1]

My family and I are planning on taking some time to visit the other resorts (we are staying at Coronado Springs). We decided that the Animal Kingdom Lodge, Wilderness Lodge, Swan and Dolphin, and Boardwalk Inn are all possibly worth seeing. Are there any you would recommend? Also out of the ones we have chosen what would be your #1 choice? We have never visited any of these before as well.

Out of the ones you listed, the WL and AKL are my favorites (although all of them are nice). I would also suggest visiting the monorail resorts. Have fun .

 

[Rosebud123]

WL and AKL are gorgeous. If you're pressed for time, I'd just do AKL since they are similar, and AKL has the animals! I think you could do a quick tour of the monorail resorts. GF is the most impressive, followed by Poly and CR, IMO.

If you have little kids then I think AKL and AOA would be the best.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

All. And I mean that. We normally stay at POR but have resort hopped to check out the sites. All Disney resorts are unique and have their own charm.

 

[happypaws]

AKL for sure. I have hopped to it as well as stayed there before, most unique resort.
Never been to WL, but considering staying there for upcoming trip.
Resort Hopping along the monorail is convenient and fun. I love eating at at least a couple of the resorts, last time Poly. But growing up we always went to GF for character breakfasts and I remember loving it as a kid.

 

[GrumpyBelle]

AKL would be at the top of my list. WL lobby is awesome. BWI has a fun atmosphere.

 

[OurLaughingPlace]

We love the whole Boardwalk atmosphere. The area is more exciting than the hotels/resorts themselves. If you do this area, I would suggest night time and a stop for ice cream at Beaches and Cream (ADR or to go window). Sounds like fun to visit the resorts

 

[ProTraderColin]

Animal Kingdom and Wilderness Lodge are a must. Then I would say Grand Floridian and Polynesian. I don't think Boardwalk (nighttime is best) and Swan & Dolphin are anything to brag about, but you can go to all the EPCOT resorts since they are close to each other.

Also, it's interesting to see how the plants and trees outside at Poly, AKL, and WL fit in with the theme of the resort.

Take your time when going through the resorts to really "soak it all in." It can definitely help you decide if you would feel comfortable staying at that particular resort on your next trip.

 

[KSR0330]

Can someone please comment on visiting AKL? Are the lodge animal viewing areas open to the public? What's the best time to go?

I've never been there, so have no idea of how it's laid out. How close is the lodge to the park? TIA!

 

[Babsy]

Can someone please comment on visiting AKL? Are the lodge animal viewing areas open to the public? What's the best time to go?

I've never been there, so have no idea of how it's laid out. How close is the lodge to the park? TIA!

The viewing areas are open to the public and are great! We often go after spending the day at the AK. The bus from the AK to the AKL is literally about 5 minutes.. You could book Boma for a buffet dinner, or eat a lighter meal at the QS Mara, or go all out and book the TS called Jiko (awesome!).Then after dinner see the animals with night vision goggles as well. You can check activities that are offered and take in some of those as well.

When finished you can get a taxi back to your resort or go to a theme park to switch to your resort bus. Just make sure that the park is still open. If not you can go to Downtown Disney.

have fun!

 

[Babsy]

Out of the ones you listed, the WL and AKL are my favorites (although all of them are nice). I would also suggest visiting the monorail resorts. Have fun .

I agree! While you are visiting the WL, you might want to take the boat or walk over to Fort Wilderness to enjoy some of the activities there! On the monorail the GF and poly are especially nice.

Also, AoA is nice for fun photo ops if you like large animated movie icons!

 

[PoohsFan1]

All. And I mean that. We normally stay at POR but have resort hopped to check out the sites. All Disney resorts are unique and have their own charm.

I completely agree with this statement!! The one and only time that we rented a car we made sure to check out all of the different resorts that Disney has to offer (minus the DVC resorts), not just the Deluxe resorts. It was such a fun day and the kids had a really great time seeing the different icons at the All Star resorts and checking out the different pools too. IMO, resort hopping is a great way to see all the different resorts, plus it helps (at least for us) to decide where we would like to stay on our next trip .

 

[Maria Manzo]

We have stayed at the Animal Kingdom, Boardwalk, and Wilderness Lodge. They all have been wonderful. However, Animal Kingdom is my favorite, just having the animals footsteps away from your room is just magical.

 

[Riff Off Gal]

Gotta agree with the Animal Kingdom Lodge and The Wilderness Lodge. They are both fantastic resorts. As for the pure beauty of the Resort and lobby you should visit The Grand Floridian.

 

[mmmears]

Animal Kingdom Lodge is my top pick... I'd suggest having a meal there and looking around.

WL is also beautiful, and easy to get to from the MK (just take the boat).

The monorail resorts are nice to visit (and easy as long as the monorail is running).

 

[Travis B]

I don't think Boardwalk (nighttime is best) and Swan & Dolphin are anything to brag about, but you can go to all the EPCOT resorts since they are close to each other.

I agree with this. The Epcot resorts are all together on an easily walkable loop, so on an Epcot or DHS day you could do the loop and spy the resorts, Storm-a-long Bay, etc. We took one afternoon and walked through them all, checking out the lobbies, ending with a meal at Cape May. They're beautiful resorts but lack the 'wow factor' of AKL. If you took kids through them I think they'd be bored. I planned many of our meals with the intent of exploring GF, Poly, AKL, etc. If you were only going to do one, I'd pick AKL.

 

[KSR0330]

The viewing areas are open to the public and are great! We often go after spending the day at the AK. The bus from the AK to the AKL is literally about 5 minutes.. You could book Boma for a buffet dinner, or eat a lighter meal at the QS Mara, or go all out and book the TS called Jiko (awesome!).Then after dinner see the animals with night vision goggles as well. You can check activities that are offered and take in some of those as well.

When finished you can get a taxi back to your resort or go to a theme park to switch to your resort bus. Just make sure that the park is still open. If not you can go to Downtown Disney.

have fun!

Sounds great- thanks!