10+ days stay . . . Where would you stay?

[caribbeandream]

Travelers - My sister and I, two pre-teens boys (in the spectrum), one teen boy who looooves Disney and can't wait to show his cousins around. They all love Star Wars, me, not so much. It would be the first trip for the pre-teen boys but my sister, my teen son and I have been to DW multiple times. Due to the pre-teen boys, we would not be touring commando style and would be taking a day off every three days (pool, FW outdoorsy activities, miniature golf, non-park character meals, etc.) Heck, I think we are all looking forward to a relaxed pace during this trip. Where would you stay (or have stayed) during a long-ish trip? (On-site?, rent DVC points? FW cabins? Off-site?) This trip is currently theoretical but it's never too early to start planning!

 

[VAfamily1998]

Two resorts that seem low key and relaxation to me are Fort Wilderness and Old Key west. I have stayed in cabins at FW a couple times, but have never stayed at OKW.
Since a pool day is part of your plan, you should know that the pool at the Fort isn't terribly exciting. It has a slide, but otherwise is just a pretty basic pool. But if the boys are just happy with ANY pool, then it will be fine.

Some things to think about; will you all be sharing one room/unit, or do you already plan to have separate rooms? Also, what kind of sleeping arrangements do you need, does everyone need a separate bed or are you ok with sharing?

 

[Disneylover99]

While I love Deluxe, I happily stay at a value or moderate for my two week trips to save money.
Pop or POFQ/POR would be my choice.

 

[Brett Wyman]

I would want a comfy home like place with a couch and full kitchen for that length of time, so for me it will be OKW. Lots of space and best price. Im not an offsite person, but home rentals via VRBO/AirBnB would be another option. I still vote OKW.

 

[caribbeandream]

Some things to think about; will you all be sharing one room/unit, or do you already plan to have separate rooms? Also, what kind of sleeping arrangements do you need, does everyone need a separate bed or are you ok with sharing?

We definitely need multiple bedrooms if we are doing a long stay. I have looked at DVC rentals that say they "sleep" 6 but you all still sleep in the same big room. The pre-teen boys especially need to regroup and recharge their batteries daily and it would be hard to do if we all sleep in the same room with no separation whatsoever. I guess we could look into connecting rooms but from what I have read they are not guaranteed.

 

[caribbeandream]

I would want a comfy home like place with a couch and full kitchen for that length of time, so for me it will be OKW. Lots of space and best price. Im not an offsite person, but home rentals via VRBO/AirBnB would be another option. I still vote OKW.

I hear you! I have a friend who rents a house with a pool when she goes to Orlando with her teen son and his army of friends. It looks amazing and so relaxing, but then I would also have to rent a car and I really, really, really don't want to do that.

 

[Hopefully]

We definitely need multiple bedrooms if we are doing a long stay. I have looked at DVC rentals that say they "sleep" 6 but you all still sleep in the same big room. The pre-teen boys especially need to regroup and recharge their batteries daily and it would be hard to do if we all sleep in the same room with no separation whatsoever. I guess we could look into connecting rooms but from what I have read they are not guaranteed.

I don’t know what you looked at but 1 BR and larger DVC Villas are multiple rooms. Studio Villas are similar to hotel rooms but I don’t know of any that sleep more than 5 so that is why I am confused.
I would look at a 2 BR Villa

 

[Dawn68PA]

Fort wilderness cabins are great! They can bring their bikes, there are lots of activities so they will have lots to do for that age!

 

[Franrose]

We have done POFQ and POR, and also the FW cabins (with golf carts, which were a highlight lol). Next visit is 13 nights at SSR in a 1bdrm.

There is something pretty special about the atmosphere at FW IMO but I think though you'd get more privacy/space/chance for different age groups to regroup in a 1 or 2bd villa, or offsite. I looked pretty hard at Wyndham Bonnet Creek but left it too late to get specials - my thoughts were that we'd just Uber everywhere.

 

[caribbeandream]

We have done POFQ and POR, and also the FW cabins (with golf carts, which were a highlight lol). Next visit is 13 nights at SSR in a 1bdrm.

There is something pretty special about the atmosphere at FW IMO but I think though you'd get more privacy/space/chance for different age groups to regroup in a 1 or 2bd villa, or offsite. I looked pretty hard at Wyndham Bonnet Creek but left it too late to get specials - my thoughts were that we'd just Uber everywhere.

I love the idea of a cabin at FW. We love Disney but we are also outdoorsy people and the pre-teen boys would decompress best in that kind of woodsy environment. My sister would not mind sleeping on the sofa bed (she's not a bed sharer) and the pre-teens can sleep on the bunk bed. The question remains whether a teen boy wants to share a bed with his own mom and whether this mom really wants to share a room with three boys! Decisions, decisions.

 

[caribbeandream]

Fort wilderness cabins are great! They can bring their bikes, there are lots of activities so they will have lots to do for that age!

We are flying in from two different state so no bringing bikes for us! But we are all horse lovers and runners so we are looking forward to exploring the property by horse and on foot.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We are flying in from two different state so no bringing bikes for us! But we are all horse lovers and runners so we are looking forward to exploring the property by horse and on foot.

I think Ft. W would be such a great choice based on your interests! In addition to the stables, they have bike and boat rentals, fishing and archery. I think you would have a lot of fun!

 

[caribbeandream]

@Franrose , The thing that bothers me about staying offsite is that we are all forced to be on the same schedule. If we stay in the bubble my teen can sleep in and meet us later at a park. I would also feel more comfortable going out for adult bevs and leaving the kids in the room if we are on-site.

 

[Brett Wyman]

OKW 2 bedroom on points!

 

[Aerinha]

Going to pretend you said money was no object lol and honestly answer the Poly. I have done two 9 night stays there quite well vs my last 9 night Dis trip at WL where I seriously regretted my choice. For me Poly has great breakfast options which is the only meal I always eat at my resort and their QS serves hot items at 6:30 a.m. You can walk to TTC for Epcot and the monorail ride to MK is short. Upon return midday after hours in the parks, you can get a Dole whip. Fireworks can be watched from the beach, then a quick walk back to your room for bed.

 

[buzznina]

Since your more outdoorsy and do not need to stay at the more plushy resorts to have a great vacation, I would vote for FW. And with all the $$ you would save over staying at the high end deluxe resorts, you can rent a golf cart, which the boys will love, and pay for a lot of your meals.

 

[zobow02]

I vote POFQ. The atmosphere is chill, and they have an amazing food court. I do also vote Y/BC, I have never stayed at Y/BC however I have visited the resort and the pool is unbelievable. I have stayed at Poly that is a good option as well.

If you guys are thinking about doing a split stay I highly recommend it, especially if you're are in Disney for 10 days... I was at Poly last week for 5 days and got sick of their counter service food pretty fast...

 

[marchingstar]

we live really far away, so we usually make our visits as long as possible to make it worth travelling. most of our trips have been in the 10-14 day range. generally speaking, for that length of time we always do a split stay. for us, that might mean trying a couple disney hotels or it might mean starting at disney and then moving to universal.

i don't honestly know if it would be worth moving hotels with your kid/niblings, but that's what's worked best for us. it means getting to explore a few different environments (from new restaurants to new things to see to specific parks being closest).

 

[ElizabethG]

We stayed 15 nights at AKV. It was very relaxing to go out on the balcony and watch the animals every morning.

We are staying for 16 nights this summer at CCV. That also has an outdoors atmosphere.

I’ve never stayed at Saratoga’s Treehouse Villas. It may be worth checking out. Thay have a really nice configuration .

 

[Redbudlover]

I would vote for AKL Jambi house. I always feel a world away when I am home there with the great QS, the fantastic Boma, the activities for the kids, the great pool with pool games, the campfires and marshmallow roasts, movies... and of course the giraffes! So easy to slip away yo the lounge... so serene but with so much to do.