5 people - Riverside or Wyndham Bonnet Creek?

[captainkidd]

Just curious to hear people's opinions. There are two adults, one teenager, and twin 10 year olds. Would you do one room at Riverside, or a two-bedroom Villa at Wyndham Bonnet Creek if price was the same? My biggest concern is that I love the Disney atmosphere so I want to stay at Riverside, but obviously the space would be an issue. So, what would you do?
For the record, the price is the same at Wyndham Bonnet Creek including the rental car which we would definitely want to have there.

 

[LeighM]

I absolutely love Riverside so I would chose that over staying off site. I'm one of those that have to be in the bubble. And my husband likes it because he doesn't want to drive on vacation. But it is just my husband and I and not a family of 5. The space would be really tight and the one bathroom might be an issue. I would prefer a family suite at AoA if possible. If you're not going to spend much time in the room and use it only as a place to sleep then it might be doable for your family.

 

[Tuvalu]

Wyndham Bonnet Creek is every bit as close to the parks as POR; it is as close an "offsite" option as there is. But you will need to factor in $20/day to park at the theme parks.

However, you can easily gain that $20/day by having breakfast in your villa.

The WBC pool area is larger and has a lazy river which POR does not.

5 people share one bathroom (POR) or two? Mom and Dad get their own room to sleep or deal with whiny kids in same sleeping quarters? Hmmmm.....

Seems the only big loss to not staying at POR would be the 60 day FP benefit.

 

[Disneymom64]

Just returned from a stay at Bonnet Creek. They charge a $15 fee to self park and a $25 a day resort fee. Only three pickup times for their busses to and from the park. I don't think I will be staying there again. Although the resort and grounds were immaculate.

 

[matt9112]

Just returned from a stay at Bonnet Creek. They charge a $15 fee to self park and a $25 a day resort fee. Only three pickup times for their busses to and from the park. I don't think I will be staying there again. Although the resort and grounds were immaculate.

wouldn't rely on offsite buses/shuttles ever. it SHOULD be planned into your vacation to use an auto if your going to be off site. Thus it has much more appeal to locals and AP holders. (no parking fee at parks and already have car locally) just my two cents.
(side note many off site hotels dont charge to park just some of them.)

 

[BigRedDad]

I am not sure what you gain "Disney wise" by staying at POR. I have been there. The theming is not very Disney-esque. If you have a Tiana room, then the room is Disney themed. However, the resort is not. Yes, it is inside the Disney bubble. WBC is as much Disney themed as POR is.

To give you some of my PERSONAL advice and people will argue with me about it. When we were at POR, we lost an entire day of vacation because of the buses. Not something I enjoy on a 6 night trip losing that much time waiting. The resort itself is very nice and I did love the resort. You have 5 people in a room. That means 1 bathroom, extremely cramped space, and to me a pain to getting anything done or having to schedule showers and getting ready. That is simply ridiculous to me.

1. Stay at WBC in a 2BR deluxe for 50-75% off the POR price. You get 3-4x the space, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, full kitchen, laundry in room, as good if not better than Disney Deluxe accommodations.
2. Renting a car cuts the savings down to about 25%. Wyndham Bonnet Creek DOES NOT have a parking fee. The previous poster might have stayed at one of the other hotels that utilize the Bonnet Creek name. Wyndham Grand Orlandm which is in the WBC property may charge the parking fee.
3. For the 5 of you, upgrade 1 to an annual pass. You will get free parking (~$120 savings), free Memory Maker ($150 savings), food and merchandise discounts (10-20% depending on what you spend). The savings more than covers the cost of upgrading 1 pass.
4. Food savings for breakfast in room and you can save a TON by grilling out or cooking dinner. The grills there are very nice and fun communal time talking with others there. If you enjoy an adult beverage, POR has a nice $7 alumibottle of Bud, but the gas station around the corner has an 8-pack for $8. Not something you can easily get to from POR but you can Uber it.
5. Included activities all day and into the night. Putt putt, billiards, etc. 5 pools, hot tubs, pirate slide.

 

[captainkidd]

I found the theming at Riverside to be among the best at any Disney resort. Loved the food court, pools, bars, gift shop, grounds and room. Does Bonnet Creek have the $25 resort fee? That would add up. I love the extra room we'd get and the pool looks very nice. However, I prefer not to drive on vacation, especially to the Magic Kingdom. And since we spend the majority of our time there, that's a concern. As for the AP savings, definitely good points. However we don't use Memory Maker and we would never eat in the room. We also don't go souvenier crazy. We would save good money on meals though.

I think it's pretty much been decided at this point as is. Showed the family videos of both resorts and both rooms, and they all chose Riverside.

 

[RKSteel]

We are a family of five, with 3 teenage DDs and have stayed at POR almost every trip. We love the resort and its relaxed atmosphere. We all manage to take showers, get ready and get out the door by 7am, you just have to be systematic.
My daughters might revolt if we ever stay offsite again. The hate it if we leave the property to go out to dinner.
I think the food court is one of the best, we are not a sit down ADR family so it works perfectly for us.
We never experienced problems with the buses. I actually had the worst bus service while staying at the Poly, extremely long wait times for non-monorail parks.
While the room might be small, we spend all day in the parks, so it is just someplace to sleep. Also, when I'm on vacation I prefer not to make my own meals.

 

[carriebeth]

If you go to Disney to be in the parks, the size of the room doesn't matter much, at least to our family. If you spend time in your room or days at your resort not going to parks, then it becomes more of an issue. We are a family of 10 (2 parents and our 8 children). We have to get 2 rooms in a moderate but find 5 people per room not to be a big hassle. We are rope drop to close at parks. Older children shower at night when we get in because they can last a few more minutes before being put to bed, little ones get showered in the mornings. I get up early and systematically wake one child at a time and get them ready.

 

[21stamps]

I found the theming at Riverside to be among the best at any Disney resort. Loved the food court, pools, bars, gift shop, grounds and room. Does Bonnet Creek have the $25 resort fee? That would add up. I love the extra room we'd get and the pool looks very nice. However, I prefer not to drive on vacation, especially to the Magic Kingdom. And since we spend the majority of our time there, that's a concern. As for the AP savings, definitely good points. However we don't use Memory Maker and we would never eat in the room. We also don't go souvenier crazy. We would save good money on meals though.

I think it's pretty much been decided at this point as is. Showed the family videos of both resorts and both rooms, and they all chose Riverside.

If you think Riverside sounds better then definitely go for it.

But, if your concern is more the driving part, Uber. It's cheap and quick.

 

[captainkidd]

Well, problem solved. Was able to rent points for $11 each, and now we're staying at the Polynesian in a studio!

 

[KrzyKtty]

Question, if you rent points do you still get the 60 day fast pass reservations?

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Question, if you rent points do you still get the 60 day fast pass reservations?

Yes, since you are staying on-site, you will get the 60 day window, just like paying cash for the room.

 

[KrzyKtty]

This is the first time I have ever heard of this!! Where do people go for it? DVD Rental Store? I may have to look into it for our next trip if it is that much cheaper than booking a deluxe resort without renting points.

 

[MissingDisney]

Just returned from a stay at Bonnet Creek. They charge a $15 fee to self park and a $25 a day resort fee. Only three pickup times for their busses to and from the park. I don't think I will be staying there again. Although the resort and grounds were immaculate.

That's the Wyndham Grand. The timeshare rentals do not pay to park.