Where to stay for last Disney trip for a long time?

[FSU Girl]

We (me and future hubby) are attending a wedding in March that is located a half hour outside of Tampa. The hotels they are offering are all in Tampa, so we figured we'd stay at Disney and drive over for the wedding since it's not too far. I'm trying to decide what hotel we should stay at since one of the days we won't really be there at all, but the rest of the weekend we will.

• Yacht Club - We've never stayed here before and would be nice to try. Like their pool and the convenience to walk to two parks. Hopefully we'll have been to Toy Story Land before this, but if not this would be a good time to go.
• Animal Kingdom Lodge - Love looking at the animals out our balcony. If we stay here I think we'd make this a more hotel oriented trip and not visit the parks.
• Bay Lake Tower theme park view - I just love this room, it's my favorite on property. But it's the most expensive and we've been here many times.
• Disney Springs hotel - cheapest option. We would make this a heavy park trip since I'm not overly fond of the hotels and wouldn't want to lounge around.
• Swan - depending on what the Disney rates are for the other Epcot hotels, this might end up being the cheaper option to get to stay near the parks. I'm not overly fond of the decorations here and would probably spend more time in the parks, but would be easier to get to than the Disney Springs hotel.

Unless we plan another spur of the moment trip this is probably going to be our last trip to Disney for a while. We are going to let our annual passes expire since we have a lot of other trips planned elsewhere and I don't really want to deal with the crowds Star Wars land is going to bring. Should we splurge on something nice since it'll be our last trip for at least a couple years?

 

[rwdavis2]

The amount you spend is something only you can answer and put a value to. We go every 4-5 years and stay deluxe every time. For 7-8 days. That's enough without getting tired of the place and to let new attractions get built between visits. We last went in 2016 and I'm guessinng we'll wait until after the 50th Anniversary.

 

[NH-to-FL]

Should we splurge on something nice since it'll be our last trip for at least a couple years?

If it were me I would splurge so...

I voted for the Yacht Club. I think the Epcot Resorts are the best location on site, especially for adults. So much to see, do, eat and drink within walking distance.

Wishing you a visit!

 

[TheSouthernBelle]

I lean towards YC for the location and being that ya'll aren't with kids, it's nice with the boardwalk right there. Have fun!!

 

[ArmyVet80]

My DW and I picked Yacht Club. We are going in Sept. 2018 for our 9th wedding anniversary. Used our AP discount on a Water View - Club level and saved about $298 per night. We have stayed at the Yacht Club before and it is an amazing resort. The pool, access to Epcot and HS, the Boardwalk at night, etc.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

Those are some really diverse choices.

 

[DisneyFansInNYC]

I would probably pick the Yacht club. We love the EPCOT hotels and the ability to get to two parks without a bus. We stayed at the Yacht club CL years ago and enjoyed it. Also love the walk to the Boardwalk at night. There are some great views there.

 

[ClapYourHands]

If I were going to be in Tampa for one of the days, I personally would hate to pay for a Deluxe and not be able to enjoy it. Your financial circumstances might be different from mine, but my thrifty-yankee heart would be torn up at the very idea of it.

Personally, I'd probably do one of the DS hotels. I've heard great things about the B Resort - the pictures make it look like it would make a great adults-only trip. And I think the proximity to DS would be fun. If it's going to be one of your last trips to Disney in a while, I think you'd want to take advantage of going to the parks, so a parks-heavy trip would make sense.

If you want to spend a lot of time at your resort, you can always come back and do a resort-only trip to AKL or YC without valid APs, leaving open the possibility of another Disney trip sooner than you think. It kind of seems like a waste to spend your last AP trip at the resorts rather than the parks. Also, if you want a resort trip, there are fantastic resorts in many non-Disney places you could try (unless you want Giraffes outside your window - then you're kinda limited to AKL, at least, in North America).

 

[rentayenta]

We chose AKV for our 25th anniversary trip this summer. Our last trip was almost 6 years ago and we are not sure when our next trip to WDW will be. Having said that were local to Disneyland and go weekly.

We will be visiting the parks; I’m not sure I could be that close and not visit the parks.

We love everything about AKL/V. The pools, restaurants, decor, and villas are awesome and we cannot find anything like it except maybe by traveling to Africa.

 

[Sue M]

I voted for YC. It’s always fun trying new resorts. AKL is very nice too, and while sitting on the balcony enjoying the animals is very cool, for us it’s not an all day replacement for the parks. I would go to the parks till mid day then return to enjoy the resort.

 

[DISdreamer1982]

AK savannah view club level with out a doubt

 

[Mousemommy1]

Well, we are planning a Disney hiatus and after this summer's trip won't be back until 2020 (after SW Land settles down). We chose the GF because it is our favorite and we are gonna do it up!

 

[FSU Girl]

The Yacht Club would complete me staying in all the Epcot resorts, which would be really cool.

We will be visiting the parks; I’m not sure I could be that close and not visit the parks.

That's true, I've never actually gone to Disney without going to the parks so we'd definitely go into them for part of the day.

Well, we are planning a Disney hiatus and after this summer's trip won't be back until 2020 (after SW Land settles down). We chose the GF because it is our favorite and we are gonna do it up!

That sounds really fun! We're staying at the Grand in November for my wedding.

Personally, I'd probably do one of the DS hotels. I've heard great things about the B Resort - the pictures make it look like it would make a great adults-only trip. And I think the proximity to DS would be fun. If it's going to be one of your last trips to Disney in a while, I think you'd want to take advantage of going to the parks, so a parks-heavy trip would make sense.

That was what I was thinking since we aren't going to be there for one of the days and spending time in the parks for our last trip does make the most sense. I wish they were closer to the parks, but it was nice walking to Disney Springs.

Those are some really diverse choices.

I feel like that's how I always am when choosing something it's all over the place.

My DW and I picked Yacht Club. We are going in Sept. 2018 for our 9th wedding anniversary. Used our AP discount on a Water View - Club level and saved about $298 per night. We have stayed at the Yacht Club before and it is an amazing resort. The pool, access to Epcot and HS, the Boardwalk at night, etc.

I'm hoping for some discounts, but plan to book soon and then would just modify if a discount comes out.

 

[nkereina]

If I were going to be in Tampa for one of the days, I personally would hate to pay for a Deluxe and not be able to enjoy it. Your financial circumstances might be different from mine, but my thrifty-yankee heart would be torn up at the very idea of it.

This was also my initial thought. In addition, I would caution you to leave early for the wedding - we stayed in Tampa in February and made to the drive to and from WDW one day and caught awful traffic.

I would lean towards a moderate resort since you won't have much resort time. But since that's not in the options, Swan is my vote, since the price can be more affordable than the neighboring Yacht Club, but you still have the location.

 

[MusicalAstronaut]

I adore YC and I think you'll want to spend a lot of time hanging out at the hotel! If you're just sleeping there I don't know if I would want to stay at Disney or shell out for a deluxe resort.

 

[dfamgirl]

Though my preference would be Animal Kingdom Lodge, this is really hard to answer without knowing your preferences for your WDW experience & also where you have stayed (if any) at before. I think that AKL is a unique Disney experience, but Yacht Club & some of the others listed are very nice and upscale. It really depends on how you want to experience WDW during your non-park time.

 

[FSU Girl]

This was also my initial thought. In addition, I would caution you to leave early for the wedding - we stayed in Tampa in February and made to the drive to and from WDW one day and caught awful traffic.

I would lean towards a moderate resort since you won't have much resort time. But since that's not in the options, Swan is my vote, since the price can be more affordable than the neighboring Yacht Club, but you still have the location.

The wedding is on a Friday, not sure what time yet they haven't announced that yet. We'll give ourselves some extra time (I'm always early) That's why I want to go up the night before so we are already up there, otherwise we have a three hour drive the day of the wedding which sounds dangerous.

The Swan is nice for the price and location I agree, you can get in way under what Disney charges for the other Epcot resorts. We will have three days at the hotel besides the wedding, which I don't think will be an all day event, probably just at night.

I adore YC and I think you'll want to spend a lot of time hanging out at the hotel! If you're just sleeping there I don't know if I would want to stay at Disney or shell out for a deluxe resort.

We will have three days to enjoy the resorts besides the time away for the wedding so it's not just for sleeping

 

[MusicalAstronaut]

We will have three days to enjoy the resorts besides the time away for the wedding so it's not just for sleeping

Then I absolutely vote Yacht Club! It's my favorite resort. The renovated rooms are beautiful (seriously, the pictures do not do them justice at all), the location is great, and the pool is fantastic. DH & I are staying there in September. He's not a Disney fan but likes the Food & Wine festival, and I can't wait to get him hooked on this resort!

 

[klacey1]

I'd say Swan or DS resort. The pool, rooms and food at Swan really are fantastic. And the outside of the building really isn't reflected on the inside if that makes sense. I think the outside of Swalphin is hideous, but the interior is classy and gorgeous.

Also, some of the Disney Springs hotels are quite nice. I really liked the Hilton Lake Buena Vista. Another fantastic pool with a lazy river and a great buffet breakfast (with eggs cooked to order). You can't beat the easy walk to the Springs!

 

[DWillowBay]

Given all you outlined, I would stay at the Swan for these reasons....It addresses some of your reasons for liking the Yacht Club (proximity to parks). It addresses the financial concerns of 'why would I pay a lot for room I'm not even going to be in?'. And... it allows for access to Boardwalk, HS and EPCOT without too much time involved (since your trip is short). This would not be the trip I splurge on because you wouldn't get ROI. Have a great time at the wedding...blessings on the happy couple....and have a magical time at the parks!