Why can't 5 fit in all the Moderates?

[Sammy]

Let me first say that we are a family of 5 who, even though we love POR, would like the opportunity to stay in other Moderates without breaking the bank (ie: having to get two rooms or a suite).

Ok...so everyone is told the reason for 4 in a room is due to fire codes, max occupancy requirements, etc. I'm sure I'm not the first one to notice this, but ALL THE MODERATE ROOMS ARE THE SAME SIZE (315 sq ft)! Why then, is it ok to have 5 to a room at POR AB with the trundles, but NOT at any other Mod resort?? Why couldn't they just stick some trundle beds at CBR, for example? It just doesn't make sense.

It's very frustrating to be limited to accommodations because of the size of your family. Its not like 3 kids is so very unusual

Just my Wednesday morning gripe.....done now!

 

[ducklite]

Sammie--
Good question, and not sure I have the answer.

It could vary by county--if I'm not mistaken CSR is in Osceola County while PO is in Orange County. Now granted, CBR is also in Orange county, but that one was there first, before the other mods were built, and it would be a bit unreasonable to go back and redo rooms with all new furniture designs for this purpose when it was already available at another resort.

WDW tends to build for the industry standard, which is occupancy of four per room. The average family is a famly of four, 2 adults and 2 children.

Although many say it's discriminatory to not build for larger families, I don't think this is the case at all. Simply put more people=more expense.

I do feel that WDW has missed the boat in one respect. They should build rooms the size of moderates with a double, a set of bunk beds, and a trundle. This would help many families. Of course I also feel they should charge more for this room. It would still be less than the cost of two moderates or a deluxe, but it would also cover the cost of laundering bedding for four beds as opposed to two, the cost of transporting five bodies as opposed to four, etc.

Although the idea of having accomodations for every need in every resort is a nice dream, it's impractical at best.

Anne

 

[christi]

Very good point! I wondered the same thing myself, we wanted to stay in a Disney property for or first trip to WDW and the cheapest one that I could book for the 5 of us was the Dolphin!! Not exactly cheap!
You really do feel that they penalise you for having that 3rd child, like you say, it's not that unusual! You kind of wonder if Walt intended for normal families to have to take out a second mortgage to enable them to stay at WDW?

 

[Tara]

FWIW, all moderate rooms are NOT the same size. Rooms at CBR are 340 sq ft as opposed to 314 sq ft for standard rooms at the other moderates.

 

[magicmouse2]

Thats what is so weird!! CBR is Bigger than POR but only sleeps 4.

I think each resort should have some rooms to take families of 5 or 5. Fair enough they have the Home Away from Home resort - wich you do need a second mortgage for , but I think they should cater more for families of 5 in the value-moderate category so that we are not forced by budget to stay offsite.
Even the Downtown Disney hotels are too far away from the magic for my liking, and some or most of these will accomodate 5.

 

[mitros]

I'm not 100% sure, but i was under the impression that you could request an extra cot , or fold out bed , or trundle, or whatever for an extra charge. Seems to me that as long as there is enough room for the extra bed.

 

[Lewisc]

I wonder why some of Pop Century wasn't built like a Doubletree. Give families a living room with a sofa bed, refrig and microwave. Handle both larger families and those who want to do some cooking in the room. Price it close to the price of a moderate.

 

[ducklite]

Originally posted by Lewisc
I wonder why some of Pop Century wasn't built like a Doubletree. Give families a living room with a sofa bed, refrig and microwave. Handle both larger families and those who want to do some cooking in the room. Price it close to the price of a moderate.

I don't think they want to encourage cooking in rooms that aren't properly equipped for it with fire extinguishers, etc.

Considering that each BUILDING at PC could have 2000+ people in it at full occupancy, I'm sure fire was a major concern.

Personally in quarters that cramped I'm glad they aren't encouraging cooking...it's too dangerous and too smelly

For families that want to cook there are home away from homes. In fact what you are describing is a DVC studio.

Yes, you could stay off-site. I think that WDW KNOWS they can't cater to EVERYONE, and really don't care about losing a few hundred rooms a year because they can't keep everyone happy. Instead they concentrate on the majority, which in the long run will be much more cost effective.

Why would they offer a Doubletree setup at a lower price than the Doubletree charges? Like I said, they already have the setup at the DVC resorts.

Anne

 

[ls1222]

I have often wondered the same thing myself as we are a family of 5 too. I called and wrote Disney about this and they stated " it was due to fire code" although like the previous poster stated all the moderates are about the same size. We love POR but would like a variety as well. It is not affordable for the deluxe or home aways (for us). I have never ran into a problem with 5 at any other hotel chain (Baymont, Days/Comfort Inn, Hampton, ect..). I wish Disney would accomodate 5 at one more moderate to give us a choice.

 

[missypie]

We are a family 5 and no one's in a port a crib anymore. It is very difficult to find a place to accomodate all of us, no matter where we travel.
What REALLY irritates me is the "all suite" hotels that have ONLY have suites with a king sized bed and a sofa sleeper. All that room and they still only sleep 4!
Also, many of the hotel/travel websites don't even mention the number of beds, or else they say that the room has a limit of 4 people when I know it doesn't.
And don't even get me started on Travelocity...on that site you can only book plane tickets for 4 people at a time.
And American Airlines e-ticket express check in (so you dn't have to wait in long lines)...it only works if you have 4 tickets or less. And I've found that travel agents are NO HELP in suggesting accomodations that sleep 5 - they naturally tell you you have to book 2 rooms.
OKAY, I've vented. Thanks everyone for your patience!

 

[n2mm]

OK disney, lets put some trundle beds in all of the moderates and start giving families of 5 a break. I always wondered this too and also knew CBR was even bigger than POR. This is something that needs to be looked at.

 

[ls1222]

I just emailed Disney again. I hope to get a response from them to have a better understanding of this. I really do enjoy POR but would be thrilled to try another moderate. I'll post if I hear anything back from Disney.

 

[Divamomto3]

I totally agree!!!
I think it is really too bad that there aren't more places that can accomodate families with 3 children inside Disney. I stayed at the YC...they allowed 3 kids, either with a room with a daybed or will a rollaway bed. I thought we'd try the Wilderness Lodge next and do the same thing and lo' and behold! WL only allows 4 in a room also unless you get the "deluxe" room, formerly known as the Jr. Suite. These options are NOT cheap! Not to mention that I would love to experience the ambience in all of the resorts! Do Caribbean Beach and Coronado Springs even offer a suite? I'm not sure...never checked. At any rate...I wish Disney had more options for families of 5. I know there are a lot of us out there! I loved staying onsite and don't want to be forced out to an offsite suite as my 3 boys get older (and bigger!)

 

[Sammy]

Is1222.....what address did you use for the email you sent? I'd love to send my thoughts along as well......

Thanks!
Sammy

 

[boston-yachter]

I bet you its all about money....

think about it...your only affordable option is to book at the POR...thats all good and well except for the fact that you've stayed there 5 times....and your looking for a change....well you only have 3 options....
1) 2 rooms at value...more money....
2) 2 rooms at the moderates....even more money...
3) book a deluxe.....even MORE money...

"fire code" could by the cover up term for "we want your money...upgrade....or get used to it..."
Its almost like disney figures the more kids you have...the money you have..."yea disney...thats it! "

The only advice I can give you is that maybe try to scrape up some more to upgrade to WL or AKL....either that or maybe push the trip back a few months....
You can book 2 rooms at the All Stars...but I'd try to see if you can get the money for a WL or AKL....

 

[lmhall2000]

When my 2nd child was 12 weeks old we found we were to be blessed with our 3rd child- making us an odd family of five. I wouldn't trade that privilege for the world- on an even brighter side having five almost requires you to (or gives you a good excuse) to stay at a Deluxe- so for us that means instead of going every year we go every other and when our kids hit over that age 9 price break we'll make it every 4 years. The fairytale package also gives you a good excuse to try a Deluxe.
And if you really want to get savvy- try renting points from a DVC'er- that can be a bargain staying at OKW or other Home away from home villas.
Just think of the families that have 4-8 children!! Can you imagine?? I guess tent camping at Fort Wilderness would be our route if we had that many. So, I'll gladly make some sacrifices through the year to give us one good trip every 2 years- we eat out about 2x a month- see a movie at the theatre probably 2x a year, stick to a very low food budget and for one week we don't mind paying $100 extra a night to stay at a deluxe- that's usually the amount of difference when you figure in discounts. We could stay at the WL for about $1800 if we were a family of four or the Poly for $2450 for a week. Garage sales, not buying sodas, setting aside money monthly for a vacation fund will help that gap get closer and not seem as much. So enjoy the benefit of that fifth child and just economize a bit more- or stay offsite. Oh and don't forget- George W. Bush is giving your family $400 more than a family with two children as a special tax credit in the form of a check this August- so that more than helps the difference!
Tara

 

[undertheradar]

We are a family of five and do not like to stay in standard hotel rooms. The room cap of 4 is standard almost everywhere we travel. We are going to San Diego in July and 90% of the hotels there cap at 4. At Disney, we normally stay offsite and enjoy the amenities of vacation villas at great savings. Yes, we drive to the parks each day, but we enjoy multiple bathrooms, full kitchens,w/d and 3 or more tvs. Disney forgot that those of us with more kids pay more to get in(#tkts), more on meals at the parks(#meals) and have fewer lodging options. We are taking advantage of the FTP in October and find the FWC pricing out at $116 per night. This is one time when we will be staying onsite to save money. Our FTP for 2A-1J-2C is only $2410 for the cabin.

 

[ls1222]

Sammy-I just went to the Disney website and clicked on guest services to send the email. There were several categories and I chose "resorts".

 

[KittyKitty]

Being an ex travel agent, I ran into fire code limits with many hotels. I suspect Disney may not have control of this restriction.

Has anyone contacted the fire department in that area? They may have the answer as to why only 4 can be in certain rooms.

I have always wondered about this.

Susan

 

[Donnainnj]

Since Disney is a municipality don't they have a say in the fire code? We know they wouldn't make the code easier then the standard, but could make them stricter if they wished. Don't know if they are doing that in this case. As a stockholder I have little problem with this policy. Those that can only afford a moderate with 5 children have a Disney choice. With my 2 kids getting older I would like a little more privacy for our next trip, to accomodate this want, I will need to spend more money, either getting 2 rooms or a home away from home. Just have to determine if the value of privacy will be worth the cost.