WL or spend extra $ for VWL for Honeymoon??

[Disneyluvr81]

HELP!! My financee and I are so torn right now about where we want to stay for our honeymoon!! We will be there 09/06/08 - 09/14/08 then heading out on a 4 night DCL. Right now I have us booked at the WL courtyard view with the dining plan. We definitely want to be at either WL or the Villas (we stayed at WL in January and fell in love with it!)

We have been saving and will be continuing to save until the honeymoon and as it stands right now, everything will be covered without taking in to account any money we may get as wedding gifts for the current reservation. We kind of had our heart set on staying in a one-bedroom Villa since it just seemed more romantic with the jacuzzi tub and king bed (not to mention the full size fridge and the washer/dryer) but I was finally able to price out our trip today and it will cost an additional $1400 to stay at the Villas.

I am so torn right now - what do you guys think? Are the Villas worth the additional $1400 for a honeymoon? How are the laundry facilities at WL as we really do not want to have to pack 2 weeks worth of clothing if we can avoid it. I had planned on surprising my DFi and taking him to Discovery Cove one of the days but I am thinking if we take on the extra expense of the Villas, that won't be able to happen.

Any insight is greatly appreciated!! Thank you!

~Krista

 

[Joan S.]

Hi, Have you thought about RENTING points?? Joan

 

[kors]

I can't comment on the hotel part, but you should not miss Discovery Cove...it is AMAZING!! The best trip I ever did. Book early for D.S. too...have a good one~

 

[lilyv]

If it were me, I would consider the WL Honeymoon suites. They come with concierge service, and would likely be much cheaper than villas....but with very nice amenities. (I think these suites come with a jacuzzi. You'd have to call Disney to ask.) Best of luck to you!

 

[lpizzuro123]

I would stick with the WL. We stayed there a few years ago and loved it. We had a court yard view, dead center, king bed on the 5th floor - we looked over the waterfall, the pool, the gyser and the lake. It was wonderful. We met another couple that were staying at the villas and as we also own timeshare (not Disney) they invited us over to see their room. It was nice but I did not like being in another building away from the main building. I would also think about the honeymoon suite in the WL.

Linda

 

[ckret01]

I got married this past May and though I didn't go to Disney on my honeymoon I know the dilema you are going through as we had the same decision on whether or not to upgrade to a better hotel when we went on our honeymoon which was $2000 more (the end result was we did spend the extra money). My personal opinion.....slurge and spend the extra money for the room you truly want....it is your honeymoon. As others suggested though if there is a honeymoon suite in the WL...I would definitley go for that instead. Good luck in your decision...no matter what your choice is you will have a great time. Congrats on you getting married.

 

[antkim]

Well, in my opinion I don't find the villa's more "romantic" although I love them! I do find that they are much farther away from all the "conveniences" of the lodge. The king bed, jacuzzi and washer/dryer are definate pluses but unless you need to accommodate 4 or will utilize the kitchen I would stay with the Lodge...JMO. I would also suggest looking into the Honeymoon suites there...I am sure they would be less expensive. Just out of curiosity I punched in CSR for your dates and a Jr. suite King came up about $400 more than courtyard at WL. I still would prefer WL as the ambiance is much more romantic there...but if a suite is what you want then CSR is an option. I also agree that Discovery Cove would be a wonderful experience and I would rather spend the $$$ on that!!!

I find WL to be romantic in itself...I am sure you will be more than happy in a courtyard view room! Make sure you note that it is your honeymoon!

ENJOY!

Kim

 

[Disneyluvr81]

Hi everyone! Thank you so much for your responses so far! I didn't know they had a honeymoon suite!

I am going to give Disney a call in the morning to see the availability and pricing! I will let you guys know what I find out! Thank you so much again for all of responses!

 

[3for Me]

Just to answer your question about the laundry facilities - they are located near Roaring Forks. If memory serves there are either 4 or 6 washers and I believe a few more dryers. (Maybe 8??) We were last there this summer, and although it was crowded, we never had to wait for a machine. It is very easy to check on your laundry while you hang out at the pool and grab a snack.

Also, you mentioned you will be on the dining plan. I think this all but eliminates the need for the full size refridgerator in the VWL. You will have a mini fridge in your room and honestly, with the DDP you really won't need much else!

Hope that helps!

 

[f7prez]

I would stick with the WL. Maybe switch to a honeymoon suite. They have king beds, not sure about jacuzzi tub (can't remember). I do remember the complimentary champagne. It was nice being in the main hotel where all the action is. Plus, do you really want to be doing laundry on your honeymoon? Use some of the $1,400 you'll save and pay the hotel to do your laundry for you.

Congratulations

 

[Colleen27]

The villas are tempting to me because we have kids and extra space is always a plus, but for a romantic getaway I would want to be in the main building. The Lodge is so beautiful, with that fireplace and the gorgeous lobby, that I'd want to be right there to enjoy it all.

With the dining plan, you don't need a kitchen (besides, who wants to cook on their honeymoon?), and you can use the hotel's laundry service for less than the cost of the upgrade (besides, who wants to do laundry on their honeymoon?). I'd say stick with the main lodge, and spend the difference on fun!

 

[Disneyluvr81]

Hey everyone! Thank you again for all of your responses so far.

I called the reservation line this morning and there are currently no honeymoon suites available but they said to keep checking back that one might open up. If one does, I think we will probably upgrade to that but I think based off of everyone's advice so far, we are going to stick with where we are at and save the money. I am excited about being in a courtyard view room - we were in a woods view the last time we stayed and quite far away from all of the action!

I never throught about sending out the clothes to be cleaned - and you guys are right, I definitely do not want to be doing laundry on my honeymoon! I am lucky in the fact that all my stuff is going to be tank tops and shorts so it won't take up much packing room - my DFi on the other hand has exactly like 5 pairs of shorts (must be nice to be a boy! haha!) and quite happy with the shorts he has - i.e. doesn't like going shopping. So it will mostly be his clothes that get washed.

Keep your fingers crossed for me that one of the honeymoon suites opens up!!

 

[2vets]

If it were me, I would consider the WL Honeymoon suites. They come with concierge service, and would likely be much cheaper than villas....but with very nice amenities. (I think these suites come with a jacuzzi. You'd have to call Disney to ask.) Best of luck to you!

So funny, I was thinking the same thing. My friend and her DH stayed one of these rooms when they married, and they were beautiful. They have a king bed and jacuzzi.

I like staying in the villas, but I agree that they lack the same atmosphere as staying in the hotel. Keep checking on the honeymoon suites, my dear! And no matter what, be sure to emphasize that it IS your honeymoon on your reservation!

Oh, and as far as the $ thing goes, I'm not saying go to a ridiculous level, but just one thought: you only have one honeymoon. If there is a way you can adjust your budget to do it, by all means, DO.

Congrats in advance!

 

[lpizzuro123]

You can request a King size bed even if you do not get the Honeymoon Suite. We had a king size bed when we stayed at the WL a few years ago. We were on the 5th floor in the center (court yard view). I know sometimes rooms with king beds are handicapped and have a shower - but I am sure we had a tub. I'll have to check my pictures (of course I take pictures of the bathrooms). If I can find my room number I'll let you know. It was a great room.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Here's my thought. Life is long; honeymoons are short. Yes, it's good to have one, but putting a down payment on a house is more important and the house will last FAR longer. Be practical. Conserve your money. Put some of your wedding gifts in the bank, don't blow all that you get at WDW.

We had a modest trip for our honeymoon, and I'm SO GLAD that we did!

Keep it as modest as you can, don't get sucked into all the wedding hype. It is so easy to do, and it's silly.

Even on your honeymoon, you'll probably spend quite a bit of time in the parks and the rest of the time...well, as long as the room has the basic amenities...it will be fine.