Why do you choose the resort you do?

Post by **rdeacon** » Aug Mon 20, 2007 1:44 pm

Well for me its ALWAYS ON SITE!!!

Staying on property add soo much to the overall experience. I can't imagine not staying on property..but I an spoiled

I hate to be even more of a brat, but our last trip to WL was sooo much nicer compared to our previous Pop Century stay. Not to dish POP, but I just found the WL experience to be far superior.

I have stayed at POLY, WL, ALK, Y&B, PO - Riverside and Mansions, Coronado ( will be there in sept

), Saratoga, All-Stars Sports, Music and Movies, and Pop Century.

Most of the time the resort choices depend on timing, travel party and budget. If it's just me and my wife we pick a resort that appeals to us at that time. We try to move around and go to different properties too. Its good to get the feel for each resort. But if we are traveling with others the resort will change to suit the needs of the trip. I must say we have gotten to most of the resorts this way.

I would say in general we tend to pick Moderate and up, with PO - Riverside, WL, and AKL being our favs.

Rich

secondstar · Post by **secondstar** » Aug Mon 20, 2007 3:59 pm

The first time we went to Disney, we stayed off property. Since then, however, we've stayed on property. I've stayed in all tiers of resorts, but we usually stay in a moderate. I agree with the original poster, it seems foolish to spend the extra money on a top-tier resort if you're not going to be spending much time there. Especially, if money is an issue. But for some, it's not, and the close proximity to the parks is a huge advantage, especially if you have kids.

My business works seasonally, so there are different times of the year that are more profitible. If money is not an issue, then I can't find a resort ANYWHERE in which I'd rather stay than Disney's Wilderness Lodge at Christmastime! If it is, then we'll stay at a moderate resort. This year, we had to purchase three APs, so we'll be staying at POR. Maybe next year, since the tickets will already be purchased, we'll stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge. (My DD4 will just love it!!!!!)

TLCMMM · Post by **TLCMMM** » Aug Mon 20, 2007 9:50 pm

I have stayed at each of the catagories. bang for buck you can't beat Pop Century. I love the moderates. Port Orleans Riverside and French Quarter are my favorite. I liked Coronado Springs alot too. The Yaught Club was absolutly the best place I have ever stayed at Walt Disney World. The Wilderness Lodge is sooo beautiful during Christmas, it really makes it feel like the holidays atmosphere is everything.

HSolo29 · Post by **HSolo29** » Aug Tue 21, 2007 12:39 am

It's always on-site for us. I think we stayed off-site twice and both times, it wasn't the best experience. On Disney property, you have everything at your fingertips and you don't have to worry about transportation or anything like that. It's just too convenient not to stay on property.

Aside from that, we always chose our hotel based on atmosphere(and money, of course). The theming and layout makes all of the difference. I know a favorite for us is Coronado Springs. It's very quiet and secluded. The distance to the main building may be a problem for some people, but we really enjoyed walking there for breakfast every morning. It got you moving.

Wilderness Lodge and the Poly are two others we frequent a lot. If we're not staying there, we always take time on our trip to just visit these hotels and walk the grounds a bit.

Joe90 · Post by **Joe90** » Aug Sun 26, 2007 5:41 am

First trip was two weeks in a 5 bed rental villa with a pool. The whole deal cost pretty much the same as two weeks in All Star (including fuel parking and tolls). When friends and family come along it's still the way to go. 10 people for two weeks in a villa costs the same as one room for two weeks at an All Star Resort.
8)

That said, If it's just the DW and myself it is a trip to an All Star Resort.

They are quiet"ish" in Jan/Feb when we go with random bursts of chaos every now and again. We are going to try other resorts whenever we feel like it. The choice may just be the "throw a dart at a map" method though.

Cost isn't really a factor. It just seems daft to spend the money for 2 weeks at the Floridian if the only time your in it is to sleep.

The fact I can enjoy the "hospitality" at Epcot and someone else will drive me home is a great thing, and all the stuff I bought will be delivered rather than me having to carry it around the parks...bonus 8)

gullyf · Post by **gullyf** » Aug Mon 27, 2007 11:51 pm

On-site is definitely the best way to go. Up until this year, we had always stayed at a moderate or better, usually POR. We did stay at Wilderness Lodge once, but really found no real advantage over POR.
Another trip we had 6 people, so opted for a Ft. Wilderness cabin instead of two rooms elsewhere. I must say that was probably the most relaxing time I have ever spent on a Disney property, and would go there again in a heartbeat if the budget dictates/allows. It felt so much like home that the kids still refer to it as "the little house".
That said, we were down this year with 8, so the only on-site option was two rooms. Since the other family was on a tighter budget than we usually travel with, the values were the best option, though we did stay a little longer and moved to AKL for a couple of nights. Ok, so here's the thing: we stayed at Pop and found that (at least in early May) we really liked it! While I don't think I would stay there at one of the busier times, I would certainly go back and would even make it a first choice in a non-peak season. Our 4 yr old twins loved the kiddie pools, the food court was good and open late, and transportation was reasonable. AKL was actually a bummer for us after that... it was, well, too quiet!
All this kinda hints at answers for the original question: Why do you choose the resort you do? I would say that it is a function of the number of people we are traveling with, any current resort discounts, budget available, and a guess at our "energy level" for the trip (value = high, mod/deluxe = low). With two 4 yr olds, I suspect we are stuck at the "high" energy level for a bit, which is quite all right with me.

TQM · Post by **TQM** » Aug Tue 28, 2007 12:25 am

We always stay on-site at Wilderness Lodge. Once we stayed at FW in one of the cabins due to the number of people we had on that trip. We love that theming of WL and it just really suits us well. Location is great, too. Close enough to MK to feel like part of the action, yet a nice getaway as well. I love going around and checking out other hotels while we're there, but nothing has really spoken to us like WL.

Blackie Pueblo · Post by **Blackie Pueblo** » Aug Tue 28, 2007 9:54 am

Sadly, I pick the resort I stay at because of price. My wife and I love Disney, but just can't afford the higher priced resorts. We keep saying someday we will stay at some but right now, it's impossible.

But that doesn't stop us from resort hopping!

"You reach a point, when you don't work for money."
---Walter Elias Disney

SimonTemplar · Post by **SimonTemplar** » Aug Tue 28, 2007 10:52 am

Whether or not to stay on site is not even up for debate for me. It's ALWAYS on site. Being on WDW property adds so much to your trip that it's hard for me to imagine not going that route.

Budget plays a major role in where we decide to stay, but it's usually Moderate on up. Our favorite is WL, followed by Boardwalk and Contemporary. We've also enjoyed PO. I will say though that my wife and I went in 2004 w/out the kids and stayed at ASM. Since all we did was use the room for sleep, it was perfect (plus very easy on the budget).

I lean toward picking a resort that's near some of the action, either by monorail or boat. We stayed at Old Key West in 2000, and while it was nice and had boat access, it was a little to secluded for my taste.

FlyingMouse · Post by **FlyingMouse** » Aug Tue 28, 2007 2:07 pm

One of the biggest reasons, at least for me, to stay onsite, is you can totally forget about the outside world. It makes it so much easier to focus on my family and having a Disney day!

On our first trip to WDW, my wife had a conference which was held (at the Mariott, I think) within easy walking distance of Downtown Disney. That was no trouble. We bused to MK and Epcot.

On our second and most recent trip, we stayed at the Carribbean Beach Resort. Rooms were on par with Holiday Inn Express. Of course, the rooms were Disney'ed, so that made them much better. Money dictated moderated resort, but the pictures on Disney's reservation website made us want the CBR. Bused to MK, Epcot, and MGM.

Our next trip, slated for July 09, we will be staying at the Contemporary for 8 to 10 days/nights. Why? Cause I've always wanted to stay there. After that, I hope to stay at a different resort each time to experience everything they have to offer.

Vicki_Mouse · Post by **Vicki_Mouse** » Sep Sun 02, 2007 10:42 am

It's onsite for us as well. We love the convenience of it all. We usually stay at CR but this year we stayed at GF (celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary!). We're already booked for CR in 2008!

boilerbabe · Post by **boilerbabe** » Sep Sun 02, 2007 5:43 pm

My parent's started taking me to Disney World when I was 3, we stayed at the Poly. So for me, I have very happy childhood memories thereand love to revisit! The grounds are gorgeous and lush. You can just hop on the monorail and get to MK or EPCOT. It is pricey, but worth it. When we can't afford a deluxe resort stay, Coronado is my second choice. There are many benefits to staying on Disney grounds. I stayed off Disney property once and would NEVER do that again! You leave the magic when you leave Disney property. Staying on the grounds is part of the magic!

Calypso · Post by **Calypso** » Sep Mon 03, 2007 8:55 am

I stay on property because of many factors, mostly because of the transportation with my kids. My youngest -- now 8 --- doesn't travel well AT ALL. I also firmly believe in the magic of Disney at the resorts. From value to deluxe, they all have their special Disney touches and I appreciate that. I also think that, in the long run, you save money --- time is money!

rmorton50 · Post by **rmorton50** » Sep Thu 13, 2007 1:21 pm

Staying off-property is not an option for us; we have to keep the magic flowing. Tradition plays a part in the choice of resort, and so does budget. We usually stay at moderates, especially POR. When we go with the children and grandchildren, the first preference is the POLY because we expect a superb experience when we all get together. But, there probably will come a time when we all want to go but can't afford the POLY. Then, we'll go back to moderate.

jozel27 · Post by **jozel27** » Sep Thu 20, 2007 11:22 am

I like the value resorts, that way I can go more than once a year. The value resorts I assume for a simple person who doesn't need all the fluff and bull from a high class stuffy place. A hotel room is just that a hotel room. Somewhere to lay your head when your tired and clean up why should you pay $$$ for a deluxe resort if you can get the same stuff in a value for a third of the price. To me that is just a waste of money that you could spend shopping or eating or playing