Worried.....

[madcam]

Ok, planning our FIRST family trip. We were originally at the WL with a woods view but I decided that I wanted to be on the monorail since we do have a 2 1/2 yr old. So I moved us to the CR and we have a garden view there. I did not want to pay the difference on a tower room so we are in the south wing. My first worry is whether or not I made the right decision with regards to rooms not resorts. Although I would like to know opinions on the two resorts as well.......but mostly about the rooms. And I am not too worried about the views.

My second worry is our travel dates. We will be there Oct. 29th through Nov. 4th. I wanted to go some time during the first few weeks of December but my 6 yr old starts competing in November/December and her season lasts until April. I do not want to wait until NEXT May to go. But I am worried about the crowds during this time (and the weather as well) Am I choosing a bad time of year to go? I read a thread about schools having fall break. I had no idea that there was such a thing. We do not have it in Louisiana and we did not have it where I am from in Texas.

Kinda freaking out over here and we leave in like 100 days or some such number so if I need to make a change I need to make it now!! Any advice? Thanks!

 

[Mr. Pig]

Take a deep breath and calm down. You won't make a "wrong" decision whatever you do. I have not stayed in the garden wing at CR - have stayed in the tower. It is a great view but I agree that the price difference may not make it worthwhile. You get a view of the fireworks at MK from the comfort of your own room but is this worth the extra? I was glad I did it once but I don't think I would justify it again. I think your thought of CR being on the monorail for easier transportation is a good idea.

On the resorts themselves - WL probably has better theming if you like the National Park Lodge look but CR is great also - just a little more plain.

We have been to WDW several times at the end of Oct. and the weather is starting to cool off but is still warm but my opinion from up north may not be the same as someone like you further south. There is no more dead slow times at Disney but your dates should not be too bad. I always hear about larger crowds during "Jersey Week" when they have a school break but see that it is Nov 8th so they will probably be there after you. The UK has school break also but I believe this year is is starting Oct. 22nd so it may be before you are there. It seems like there is always something going on so don't be scared of reports. This is really not a bad time to go.

 

[madcam]

Thanks.....that is kind of what I thought. I have heard that there are no real slow times anymore. I know that the MNSSHP and the F&W festival draw crowds during that time but I guess there is always something going on down there anyway. You are right about the weather.......it is always hot down here and even when it isn't I am sure everyone north of us has a good laugh at how much we whine about the "cold". I can't remember the last time I took my kids trick or treating that they didn't come back sweaty!!!

 

[Deb & Bill]

The CR south wing is wonderful. We loved it. Very big, close to the pool, close to parking if you have a car. You don't have to wait on an elevator everything you go to your room like you do in the tower. There's a covered walkway from the south wing to the main building.

Make sure you get tickets for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party because it is a blast. You'll be able to walk to the MK from the CR, too.

By the way, we're in Louisiana, too. NW LA.

 

[Kimberle]

I have stayed at both with our young child. Personally, I found WL better for young children. Everything is under 1 roof. You don't have to run outside during those ever present afternoon showers if you want to refill your mug or get a bite to eat. WL has a kiddie pool, none at CR. WL has a playset on the beach with lots of beach chairs. It was never busy during our stay. CR's playset was on a small patch of grass surrounded by concret. The main pool is much nicer at WL, better theming. CR does have the mickey shaped pool, but it is very "concrete". When we stayed at CR, we missed the transportation at WL. The boat was so easy to push our stroller on. It was a long trip upstairs to the elevator platform from the wing to get the monorail. When we went to Epcot, you have to change trains at the TTC. That ment pushing our stroller down the llloonnnggg ramp and up a lllooonnnggggg ramp to the other platform. The bus from WL was easier (and quicker). Just fold the stroller and get on.

Now, I do love CR. We just didn't stay there again until we didn't need a stroller and our dd could swim.

 

[cjnix29]

WL hands down!!!! For the first trip, you will love the theming. The CMs there are awesome. We took our DS3, and didn't have any problems with transportation, the boat worked great. There are a lot of things for kids to do, and to see. Pool is awesome. Having everything under one roof DEFINITELY makes a difference! WL is my happy place.

 

[madcam]

I did read that CR is less "themed" than the other resorts and that is fine with me. Personally, I wish there was an actual resort property that had more along the lines of Marriott/Hilton/Onmi type rooms. You know, big beds, nice linens, garden tubs.......not so much cheeziness. (no offense to those of you who love that sort of thing...different strokes and all that!) So the remodel of the CR seems to be the closest thing to that. I think the Swan and Dolphin are sort of like that but you can't get the DDP over there and I love the idea of not having to stress about a food budget. (Actually if they had something along the lines of the Deluxe Palace Tower rooms at Caesar's Palace........heaven!!) But I am not too worried about the pool situation since we are going in October/November. Yes, I know it will still be warm but I have our days pretty packed and if we hit the pool, great, but I didn't really schedule time for that this trip. Thanks for all the info....anyone else have advice and tips or even pictures, it would be much appreciated!!

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Speaking as a huge Contemporary fan you made a fantastic choice switching to the Contemporay and since you have a 2 1/2 yr old, you will love being that close to the Magic Kingdom. Not sure if you know this when taking the Monorail back from the Magic Kingdom, the Contemporary is the next stop so it won't take long for you to arrive.

 

[beth_cam]

We did not enjoy CR especially in a wing and felt the monorail held very little value with our 2 1/2 and 4 year olds. I always feel the monorail is overrated in it's helpfulness....especially with CR - It is a bit of a hike from a wing room to the monorail. It's quicker/easier to walk to the MK from CR, and can be quicker to walk back when the lines for the monorail are jampacked after closing. You have to change monorails to get to epcot making the trip much longer and more of a hassle but probably still quicker than the bus. You still have to use a bus to get to MGM, AK, and DTD. We do love the monorail and make a point to take it some but I definitely wouldn't pick my resort for it. The CR pool is very boring compared to WL. and I do absolutely love the under one roof thing. One of my biggest ++ about AKL.