what would your go to resort recommendation be?

[Wishuponastar0412]

We are similar to you! My husband is in his early 30s and I'm in my late 20s. We've been going regularly for the past 5 years (all of his trips were with me... it's growing on him!) Hopefully this helps.

-Port Orleans - we LOVE French Quarter. We've stayed there twice and took our engagement photos there.
-Contemporary- we haven't stayed her yet. We went through on our way to Top of the World Lounge over Christmas and my husband said he didn't like it. So, probably not staying... but most of the appeal is MK and that's our least favorite park. We spend most time at Epcot and Animal Kingdom.
-Poly- we're staying here in November and I am so excited. It has great theme. I love that you can walk to the TTC to take the monorail to Epcot (when it's open). We rented someone's DVC points (ours are long gone...) which makes it more affordable. I'm not sure how comfortable you are with the like no cancellation policy.
-Wilderness Lodge- we love! We stayed Copper Creek at Christmas and it was just magical. We went to Yellowstone last summer and it was great to see the original and then Disney's version. Highly recommend - it doesn't feel like you are in Disney. Our current favorite resort (of course, this seems to change every trip lol)
-Animal Kingdom- our first deluxe! You have to do a Savannah room if you stay here. The fact you can wake up and sit on your balcony and see animals is amazing. It doesn't feel like Disney. The rides to the park didn't matter for us since as I already mentioned we love AK. The buses seemed like every 5 minutes for there. Where else can you find a hotel that overlooks giraffes?
-Potentially Grand Floridian - we're staying here in January after marathon weekend for a night. I stayed here as a kid and remember just it being magical. We want to be able to relax and we love all the restaurants here.

We do short stays to help make it affordable in the deluxe. We have no issues just staying 1 or 2 nights and then switching to a moderate or value. Mid-week is obviously cheaper than a Friday or Saturday night. We do own DVC which does help (how we stayed Copper Creek), but we have rented points from sites and on the boards and it helps make the cost a lot less. My night at the Poly in November is around $240, my night at Grand is $266. Good luck with picking, but you can't go wrong with any of them!

 

[Dug720]

Here's my order for the ones on your list:
1 - Animal Kingdom Lodge - absolutely love it!! So calm and peaceful.
2 - Polynesian - my dream resort; I'm only NOT staying there for Marathon Weekend because of the renovation of the rooms and GCH

a gap and then separated only by the smallest degrees
* Contemporary - just not my style, doesn't feel like Disney in terms of the rooms
* Wilderness Lodge - I am not into Western themeing, just doesn't appeal to me
* Port Orleans - I've stayed in both Riverside (Mansions which felt stuffy to me, and the Bayou just looks junky and doesn't appeal to me) and French Quarter (so many shades of NOT into New Orleans)

and then a BIG gap until
* Grand Floridian - I am nowhere near that fancy and cannot see myself feeling comfortable there; I felt awkward enough just walking through the lobby to get to 1900 Park Fare...cannot imagine actually staying there; I'd be miserable

 

[Marthasor]

thank you @Marthasor!
that was pretty much exactly what i was looking for.
the only reason why i say pricing aside is because we know they are all going to be expensive. it was more about favorites to start at and i do appreciate your insight on each!
GF is what we may 'work up to' being that it is probably the nicest?
WL and AKL seem to be what we may start at.

We may look into a split stay so that we can make a Savannah room at AKL more achievable!!

I like the AKL-savannah split idea. When we stay at AKL, it's usually for 3 nights. We like to tour AK while we are there and then spend one full day enjoying the resort. If you split AKL with one of the other resorts on your list, I think you would have a really enjoyable stay and with only two adults, splitting is easy, IMHO!

 

[Eastern]

I like the theming of AKL and I like the restaurants but we have never stayed there because of the distance from the parks. We like to be able to walk to at least one park. (I often suggest it as a choice and someone always nixes it: 'too far!')

At POFQ it's all buses but *in our experience* we have never had to share a bus and we have stayed there mulitiple times. Small resort, so no building is too far from the food court, gift shop or buses. You get back from the parks after walking all day long and you know you will always have a short walk to your room from the bus stop. Nicely decorated at Christmastime.

 

[skramer100]

Another thing to look into is time of year. For us if we are going around the holidays WL is the clear cut winner. Really makes you feel like you are not in Florida when you pull up, especially in the winter.
We loved Port Orleans and how quiet it was. Very peaceful resort and nice to walk around.
GF was a 1 day trip with our son and we were out a lot at the parks. Got a stupid deal for like $275 and asked for an upgrade. Ended up with an outside room with theme park view. Son crashed and wife and I sat on balcony with some wine watching electrical parade.

 

[Dug720]

Really makes you feel like you are not in Florida when you pull up, especially in the winter.

My genuine question every time I see this sentiment is: if you don't want to feel like you're in Florida, why are you going to Florida? It doesn't make sense to me. Spend vacation dollars going where you want to go rather than going somewhere you don't and then paying to stay somewhere that makes you feel like you're not there. I'm confused.

 

[Octoberbaby]

Our very favorite is one that you are definitely not interested in (YC). Out of the ones listed...

The Polynesian is our second favorite resort. The rooms are a wonderful size and any standard view room is wonderful...no need to pay extra there for an upgraded view IMO. Dining is also wonderful.
I love AKL, but only a Savannah view. The rooms are about the same size there as they are at WL. We also love the dining and animals.
I wouldn't do Contemporary without a room in the Atrium...the garden wing is weird to me. Super close to MK, you can walk there in about 5 min.
The Grand is always beautiful, but holy moly try to get a discount for that one lol. Room sizes there are a great size just like the Poly and Contemporary, and the dining is wonderful there as well.
The Wilderness Lodge is beautiful! The rooms are on the smaller size like AKL, but we enjoy the atmosphere especially if we want to be close to the MK without paying for a monorail resort.
POR is probably our least favorite moderate. NOT the FQ, which is the sister resort. POR is pretty, but we probably wouldn't stay there again.

 

[skramer100]

My genuine question every time I see this sentiment is: if you don't want to feel like you're in Florida, why are you going to Florida? It doesn't make sense to me. Spend vacation dollars going where you want to go rather than going somewhere you don't and then paying to stay somewhere that makes you feel like you're not there. I'm confused.

For us it is because we live in South Florida. Driving up there and having the colder nights with that lodge makes it feel for us that we are out west and still at Disney.

 

[Dug720]

For us it is because we live in South Florida. Driving up there and having the colder nights with that lodge makes it feel for us that we are out west and still at Disney.

OK. Thanks for answering.

I guess I'm weird in that if I wanted to "feel" out west, I'd just go out west and save Disney for another time.

But I appreciate hearing your reasoning.

 

[Disneylover99]

Another thing to look into is time of year. For us if we are going around the holidays WL is the clear cut winner. Really makes you feel like you are not in Florida when you pull up, especially in the winter.
We loved Port Orleans and how quiet it was. Very peaceful resort and nice to walk around.
GF was a 1 day trip with our son and we were out a lot at the parks. Got a stupid deal for like $275 and asked for an upgrade. Ended up with an outside room with theme park view. Son crashed and wife and I sat on balcony with some wine watching electrical parade.

Totally agree with this. There are particular resorts I love in the summer, but I have no desire to stay at in the winter. The Poly comes to mind. We stay there in the summer and love it because it’s so hot and to me it’s just a tropical type resort. I wouldn’t want to stay there in the winter when there’s too much potential for cooler weather. I don’t think it would feel the same.

 

[Eastern]

CR garden wing is good when you want to save some money and still be in a deluxe location as it is often the cheapest offering. The rooms are quiet and covenient. When we stayed there I asked for a room in close proximity to the tower. It was very convenient and shopping, monorail, and restaurants are right next door.

 

[mrd7896]

4. Consider SPLIT STAYS! That's how I first budgeted for a deluxe hotel, and still do! We stayed at a low cost offsite most of the trip, and just 1 night at the deluxe, and that time was 100% at that hotel (no parks). Low cost hotel portion of trip was our park days. Even now, I'll happily spend 1 night at a $100 hotel when deluxes cost $700+, because $600 is a lot of $!


I have stayed at GF a few times, but still only stay there when I see an exceptional deal.

If price is no object, and you don't see any great deals, I'd start maybe with PO, then AKL/WL, then CR, then Poly/GF. Not because I think GF is the best, but because it is the most expensive, and not worth the extra money. If you happened to see PO and GF offered for the same price, then jump on it. Otherwise, it isn't worth the extra $; wait until you have extra money to waste.

You gave such great advice and information!! i really appreciate you taking the time to lay all of that out.
I think a Split stay is something we are very much so going to consider.
For a few reasons:
1. We are two adults and picking up and moving is pretty simple
2. Money of course
3. Proximity to certain parks

If we do a Monorail hotel we could have a shorter stay and make it so that we go to Epcot and MK during those days.
Then we could move to one of the lodges where i'm okay being a bit further and having to rely on buses.

OR instead of a deluxe to a deluxe, we throw in POR or GDT

The reason why i would want a lodge for our next stay is because it would be around christmastime which would be gorgeous

 

[mrd7896]

Our very favorite is one that you are definitely not interested in (YC). Out of the ones listed...

In all actuality, we really loved briefly walking around YC and after our breakfast there i asked my boyfriend if he would want to stay there he said yes.
But when we compiled a list, we left EP resort area hotels off.
We put WL because of the gorgeous lodge feel, we are big nature people and the lodge just seems cozy and inviting.
AKL because its AKL...my boyfriends' favorite park is AK because of the animal trails. so this was a no brainer
Poly because of the atmosphere and feel
GF because it is uber luxurious and the appeal of the monorail of course
CR because of the uniqueness of resort and we used the pathway to walk over after our breakfast one morning and it was super convenient.

the resorts themselves in EP are gorgeous but not quite on the same level of overall experience that the others in our list have-in our personal opinion.
And aside from some pretty standard look of hotels, we would hold off on those until our list is complete.
We already think GF is a little over our heads since we are young and feel like we would seem out of place there.

 

[mrd7896]

Totally agree with this. There are particular resorts I love in the summer, but I have no desire to stay at in the winter. The Poly comes to mind. We stay there in the summer and love it because it’s so hot and to me it’s just a tropical type resort. I wouldn’t want to stay there in the winter when there’s too much potential for cooler weather. I don’t think it would feel the same.

For our next trip we are looking at December which is why WL creeps up higher and higher as what to do next.
Now just trying to figure out if a split stay would be a better idea.

Too bad december for next year doesn't have prices out yet because i really want to start comparing!!

 

[paradesintherain]

I’m very biased toward Animal Kingdom Lodge, so that’s my vote. I’ve never had an issue with the location of the resort, just budget your transit time accordingly.

I really wrote because I wanted to recommend a pool view room! Savanna is nice, but not having it has never diminished a stay for me - you can still see the animals on the overlooks. Pool view is a bit cheaper and, I think, pretty beautiful!

 

[MonkAdrianMonk]

Jenny's87 said "Grand - same pros as Contemporary + excellent theming + that lobby!. Really my only con here is the price-point given your alternatives."

Isn't the other con that you need to go outside to get to and from the lobby, like Polynesian?

 

[AliceIn]

I've stayed at all the resorts on your list. If I had to pick one to ease into the Deluxe resort price, I'd go with a Garden Wing room at the Contemporary.

1. You get the same room as the ones in the tower at a much better price.
2. The GW rooms are more convenient to the pool and the laundry, though you do have to go outside to get food.
3. You can walk to Magic Kingdom from the Contemporary! Great perk, but if you want to ride, you have the resort monorail, too.
4. When the Epcot monorail its running, you have quick access to the TTC via the Monorail in the Contemporary lobby.

My second pick is the Polynesian, it is one of my absolute favorite resorts, but it is significantly more expensive than the Contemporary GW, but has some great things.

1. The theme is one of the best on property. You truly feel a relaxed island vibe the whole time you are there.
2. The pools are wonderfully themed. The Oasis leisure pool is one of my favorites - it's beautiful and absolutely serene and relaxing.
3. Very quick and easy access to both Epcot and Magic Kingdom with a short walk to the TTC. You also have boat access to the MK. Of course this is when all the services are running.
4. Food options at the Poly are wonderful.

Third pick is Animal Kingdom lodge. If you stay here, get a Savanna view because that makes or breaks the resort as a top pick for me. The rooms, though, are much smaller then the MK resorts, Transportation is the biggest drawback, especially if using the buses. The rides to and from to MK, Epcot, and HS are long. Kidani is picked up and dropped off first, so if you don't get a seat you are standing for a long time.

1. Theme at AKL is wonderful. One of my favorite things is that there are cast members from all over Africa who share cultural songs, stories, and provide information on the wildlife.
2. Some of my favorite restaurants are at AKL and Kidani. Boma and Sinaa are top notch! We go there to eat every time we visit WDW.
3. The grounds are absolutely gorgeous!

If you are pool people, I'd reconsider the Beach and Yacht Club. Stormalong Bay is absolutely the best pool in all of Disney. Being able to walk to both Epcot and HS is great, too. When park hoppers are around, having the ability to go wander in the world showcase at night is a real treat.

Last - the Grand Floridian has never been my favorite resort. The rooms are probably the nicest, but I don't like the theme, and it feels like the pools are a hike from both the main building and some of the outer buildings. I know some absolutely adore the GF - so your MMV.

 

[Miffy]

OP: Some of the resorts on your list aren't currently open, like AKL. Nor sure if it will be open in December. Poly is closed until the spring, I believe.

Also be aware that AFAIK, the monorail isn't running to Epcot now, so a monorail resort will get you monorail access only to MK.

A lot of posters here love split stays. I've done a couple and would prefer not to for one reason: the day you move resorts, you'll be without a room for a few hours. If this isn't a big deal to you, that's fine. For me, I like knowing that I've got a room if I'd like to go back to the room early in the afternoon. Just something else to consider--like you don't already have enough to consider!

 

[Wild4Walt]

POR is our go to for Mod - we like that there is QS and TS and that's it's walkable to POFQ. We enjoy the pool bar area as well as Rivers Roost ( Yeehaw Bob ).

For a Deluxe, I think you get your most bang for your buck at either AKL or WL. AKL is beautiful and it's so cool to see animals at your resort but it is off the beaten path. We stayed there for our honeymoon because that was the type of experience we were looking for. If you want to me more in thick of things, then I would go with Wilderness Lodge.

 

[Ensusieasm]

Port Orleans Riverside! Magnolia Bend Mansion section. It’s beautiful. Don’t pay more for a room with a view because you don’t have a balcony and you are going to want your curtains closed because people walk right by your window. You are not going to sit there looking out the window anyway. Instead, you will want to take a stroll or horse drawn carriage ride along the Riverside walkways.