Resort Only Visit in late March 2014

[Family B]

We are thinking of a Spring Break Trip in March 2014 and doing only resort & orlando things. (No or limited Park days.)

We have been during Spring Break before but typically go during off season. We really just want to focus on Resort Activities or activities outside of the Parks.

What resort is the must do resort for Resort Only visit for at least 5 days? (We are open to really any level of resort.)

What activites are must do? (Besides the Theme Parks, which we know are awesome!)

DS will be 10 and DD will be 6 at the time of this visit.

Looking for tons of advice, we always pack in the park time and really want to just spend a week relaxing and enjoying a great resort.

 

[ImagineerDude]

Well any resort would be great because it's Disney! But because you are doing no parks I would choose something on the Boardwalk or monorail! You should visit all of the resorts! There are great places to dine and shop in them signature, casual, or quick service. It's a nice change of pace You can also watch the fireworks from the Poly beach or really any monorail loop hotel. You can't go wrong in Disney Umm...Downtown Disney and the Boardwalk will be must dos. Have you thought about a spa visit, parasailing, or renting boats or mini golfing or visiting the waterparks or Disney Quest? Cirque Du Soleil? There are soooo many options! I know some resorts have Movies Under the Stars at the pool or campfires with s'mores! I've never been to the world over spring break but the weather can vary. My friend went this past spring break and after the little tornado Orlando had they had to buy pants because it cooled off! So swimming days may vary but deluxes have hot tubs! Have fun!

 

[jrab0616]

We walked over to the Beach/Yacht Club on our trip two weeks ago and it looked like an awesome place to stay if you were going to be spending time at the resort! I'm sure someone who has actually stayed there could give you more details, but it was pretty cool looking. The pool area was huge and had an awesome looking water-slide. We did get Ice Cream at Beaches and Cream and that was really good. It's also just a short walk away from the Boardwalk which was pretty cool too and I've heard it comes alive at night time. If I was going to do a resort only say, I would want to stay at the Beach Club.

I would definitely recommend mini-golf. We did that for the first time this trip too and it was really cool. We played the green course at Fantasia Gardens (which was actually pretty difficult), but the other course looked fun and there is always Winter Summerland too.

Of course, there is always Downtown Disney to explore. There's always resort hopping too. Take the time to eat at some of the other resorts and look around.

I would love to take a trip like this, but I don't know if I could do it without going into the parks!

 

[luv]

I wouldn't stay in a Disney hotel if I were looking for a lot of resort-type activity that didn't include parks. There are MUCH better places to do that sort of thing off the WDW property.

But if you're hell-bent on Disney, I vote for Fort Wilderness. They have the most "extra" type stuff to do.

Have fun!!

 

[zurgandfriend]

I would say the beach club/yacht club as the have storm-along bay, good luck with the no parks thing I know many people who said it but none that ever succeeded.

 

[onesandzeros]

If you enjoy baseball, the Atlanta Braves have their Spring Training at Disney’s Wide World of Sports. The town of Celebration has a nice lake, walking trails and restaurants.

 

[KLeigh]

I also vote for the Beach and Yacht Clubs. Storm-along Bay is one of the best resort pools on property. It's also home to one of my favorite TS places, Beaches and Cream. Not to mention you're just a short walk from the Boardwalk, and can see the fireworks at Epcot!

Definitely check out the other resorts during your stay, they all have a lot to offer and it's a good way to pick out a resort for your next visit! Be sure to check out the Poly one night for Ohana or their dinner show, the electrical water pageant and the MK fireworks, too!

 

[DizneyPryncess]

I would add in a vote for Beach & Yacht Club. With kids that age, they will love the swimming pool. It was one of the main reasons we stayed there a few years ago, but then we hardly used the pool because we did the parks every day. So we decided we wouldn't stay there again unless we were going to have some pool time.

You can also walk the Boardwalk, which has some fun magicians & entertainers in the evenings, along with a few carnival games. You can rent surrey bikes on the Boardwalk which go on a loop around Beach & Yacht Club and back around. My daughter loved that! It's been said, but the movies under the stars on the beach are lots of fun too. It's a nice way to end your day.

Other activities or ideas around WDW that aren't parks:
-Downtown Disney
-DisneyQuest
-La Nouba (great show!)
-Carriage rides at Ft. Wilderness or Port Orleans
-Campfire & Marshmallow Roast w/Chip & Dale (free) at Ft. Wilderness
-Watching Wishes from the beach of the Polynesian
-Specialty cruises for fireworks viewings, or the Pirate & Pals fireworks voyage
-Make ADR's at fun restaurants not in the park that the kids will like. Like 'Ohana or Whispering Canyon Cafe.
-Mini-golf at Winter Summerland or Fantasia Gardens
-Rent some watercraft - you can do this at many Disney resorts.

We have done trips to Orlando where we don't visit any parks, or just visit one park. This is because my in-laws have a time share there, but don't like theme parks. (Why they have a time share in Orlando is confusing to me for this reason.) When they invite us to go w/them, they like the family to do everything together. So in years past, we found other Disney-ish things to do besides parks.