Where would you stay pre/post cruise?

[Jhondy]

My 3 year old DD and I are going on a Disney cruise at the end of October. We will be staying one night before the cruise at a Disney hotel (we land at 10:30am the day before cruise) and will be staying one night after the cruise at a Disney hotel.

We will not be going to the parks because 1 day park tickets are crazy expensive and we wouldn’t even get a full day. So, this will be a hotel stay only. Unless some really good discounts come out, I’m looking at staying at a moderate hotel or lower. Where would you stay in this situation that has a good pool/splash pad and other activities to keep a 3 yr. Old busy?

Right now I have Royal rooms at POR booked for night before cruise and POFQ for night after cruise. But I’m also wondering if I should just stay at All Star Movies and save like $130-200 each night. I’ve never stayed at all stars. I want there to be activities and stuff to do but not have the pools/activities be over crowded.

 

[Sakura1017]

Call DCL to find out what hotels are available at WDW for a pre and post stay. They can add it on to your cruise package and may be a little more of a discounted price versus what you see online at WDW website since they operate on different entities. Plus DCL holds certain rooms as a block before a cruise.

 

[Disneylover99]

I’d definitely consider POFQ. It’s compact. They have a nice water play area for young kids. Plus you could take the boat to Disney Springs if you feel like a little trip.

I’d skip POR. It’s just too spread out.

I’d also consider Pop or AofA. It’s really enjoyable to walk around there, plus you could take a ride on the Skyliner.

 

[Peaseblossom36]

If pool days are the plan I would pick POR.

We stayed at FQ for a few days before our cruise and loved it. If we had our kiddo then and were planning pool days I would have picked POR because of the pool. There are also multiple pools, so if one were too crowded you could easily move to another one. We walked to POR one of the days and while it’s spread out if you aren’t doing parks and walking I wouldn’t consider that too big of an issue. My little loves going for walks so that might actually be a perk, if yours does too. I don’t think there’s a wrong choice between the two. I would probably not do that upcharge for the Royal rooms, if I was wanting to save.

The only reason I would pick FQ over POR would be that POR is dog friendly and has a curtain instead of a door to the sink area.

 

[jimmymc]

I agree with POFQ. It has one of the best pools on property for a 3 yo, and the slide is small enough that she can probably do it.

 

[jacknsally19]

Are you really committed to a WDW hotel? There are a lot of really fun non-disney hotels with amazing pools in the area that are significantly less $$ and you could have pool OR beach access. Just throwing it out there

 

[megs1313]

my recommendations in order:
1. POFQ
2. POR
3. CBR
4. POP

 

[RoseGold]

I've always wanted to go to that lazy river in the Hilton properties, but never did because I'm always park focused.

 

[holden]

I've always wanted to go to that lazy river in the Hilton properties, but never did because I'm always park focused.

The Hilton Bonnet Creek has a nice lazy river.

 

[Husker Mike]

The primary reason to stay at a Disney resort is to go to the parks. If the parks are not part of your plans, you can stay at nicer hotels for much less off site.

 

[Jhondy]

Are you really committed to a WDW hotel? There are a lot of really fun non-disney hotels with amazing pools in the area that are significantly less $$ and you could have pool OR beach access. Just throwing it out there

We do plan on staying at WDW because we won’t have a car. With just myself and a 3 year old my biggest priority is safety and I feel safe at Disney and can use more public transportation then an Uber.

Id love to stay at hotel by the beach but trying to logistically plan that is just too stressful for me and my semi-irrational safety fears prevent that (I work in criminal Justice so constantly seeing and dealing with crime has definitely given me many irrational fears)