Anyone besides me actually prefer Value resorts to Moderates?

[durangojim]

We've stayed in Deluxes for the past 10 years exclusively, primarily GF, WL, and BC but last year, due to the economy and some other factors we decided to try a moderate -- PORS. After reading some glowing reviews, we booked a four night trip in a standard room. The grounds were pretty, the pool was nice, the rooms were nice -- and we would definately never stay there again. It lacked almost all of the things we enjoyed about the Deluxes which above all were the conveniences. The convenience of running down to the snack bar and bringing food back to eat in the room with kids, the convenience taking a boat, monorail, or walking to the parks, or at least not having a crowded bus to ride. PORS had none of this. It was too far to walk to the food court to bring the food back, the main pool was a good hike as well, and the bus transportation was pitiful. After waiting nearly an hour for a bus becuase each bus that arrived at the main depot was completely packed, we took a taxi to the MK. This was at 9 am. We've never had to do that, ever. So while the resort was beautiful and beautifully themed, it wasn't for us.
Three months later we returned to WDW and stayed for a night at Pop Century before spending 7 days at BC, and while short, it was great! Again, we were in a standard room, but it wasn't a long walk to the food court or stores. Transportation was great. We had no wait to Downtown Disney or Epcot. The theming was simple, but fun, and there was no confusion over which path to take. The food was good and close enough where I could easily bring items back to our room if the kids became hungry. My wife and I decided that if we wanted to take a short trip (3 or less nights) we could be completely happy with staying at Pop to save some money.
I guess I'm writing this to see if anyone else feels the same way I do, in that the extra money for a moderate isn't enough of an improvement over what you get at the value. Neither class will compare with what we get at deluxes but for us, Pop seems the way to go if we're doing it on the cheap.

 

[Mikester71]

Personally I like Pop! Century. I look at it this way... I only need the room to sleep and shower.. The rest of the time I am in the parks.... Why spend bookoo bucks when most fo my time will be spent outside of the room. Less money spent on the room means more money for the parks

Couldn't have said it better myself!!! Plus, with the extra money we save, we take a day trip off property every now and then. Next trip, we are going to hit up Kennedy Space Centre and the east coast beaches for a day or two on the way home.

 

[RickyMouseMom]

We've stayed at Deluxes (WL), Moderates (CBR, POR, POFQ) and Values (ASMo, ASSp, POP). We prefer values...especially POP. We love the ease of the foodcourt at POP, and the fun theming for our kids. The moderates, to us were blah; the deluxes are too serious for our rambunctious boys (ages 4 & 7). :wave:

 

[Chu-Chi Face]

Definately moderate for us! We've tried both ends of the spectrum and settled with POFQ.

Pop has been a nightmare the past two stays. We always stay for 14 nights - way too long to spend at a value resort!!! 3/4 nights I could probably do. At Pop we have experienced really BAD lines for the buses, often waiting upwards of 30-40 mins, and we wern't even there during peak season.

We do POFQ for its compact layout and take the car to the parks most of the time!

 

[drossjr]

I honestly hate the value resorts, its a Super 8 with weird paint and statues.

POR is far superior to these other resorts especially the All-Star Sports resort. That place in particular is a dump, the CM's are rude and terriable and the Food Court is messy and the Bus situation is always busy and usually the furthest walk at the Parks.

Here's a tip get a rental car!

 

[slappy magoo]

Hate the size of the value rooms (and that's only from looking inside one that a friend was staying in), hate the lack of sitdown restaurants, hate the lack of amenities. And I always have a car -either my own or a rental - so I'm not beholden to Disney's transportation (though we do use it and I don't see many problems aside from the obvious ones, like leaving a park right at closing). The big oversized themes are cute and I can see why people dig them. But I'd choose a moderate in general, and PORS in particular, over any of the Values any day of the week unless cost became a factor.

 

[MKCP 1985]

The values have great big swimming pools where your kids can have a lot of fun splashing around with other kids.

That's just about all I can say positive about value hotels though. :lol:

The moderates are better in practically every way.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Personally I like Pop! Century. I look at it this way... I only need the room to sleep and shower.. The rest of the time I am in the parks.... Why spend bookoo bucks when most of my time will be spent outside of the room. Less money spent on the room means more money for the parks

We used to say the exact same thing when we were spending all our waking hours in the parks. As we made more trips, slowed down, and began looking to relax by spending more time at our resort of choice this thought changed. I think what resort you choose depends on what you want out of the place you stay. For a bed & shower & basic pool to cool off the values are the way to go. If you spend more time at your resort relaxing, maybe looking for the different amenities, spas, dining experiences, or maybe your kids would enjoy a water slide and/or zero entry point at the pool then moving up to a moderate or deluxe could be worth while. It just depends on what you want out of your resort.

 

[Mikester71]

We used to say the exact same thing when we were spending all our waking hours in the parks. As we made more trips, slowed down, and began looking to relax by spending more time at our resort of choice this thought changed. I think what resort you choose depends on what you want out of the place you stay. For a bed & shower & basic pool to cool off the values are the way to go. If you spend more time at your resort relaxing, maybe looking for the different amenities, spas, dining experiences, or maybe your kids would enjoy a water slide and/or zero entry point at the pool then moving up to a moderate or deluxe could be worth while. It just depends on what you want out of your resort.

I agree 100% with hrcollectibles, but I hear where you are coming from with your answer too. Personally, I have only been 3 times, with a 4th planned for next year. I am still in that "wanting to spend every waking hour in the park" phase I guess each trip. I just look at it as I wait 2 years to get to spend 10 days down in the Florida sun with my family and the last thing I want to do is spend it sitting at my resort when I only have a limited time down there. Especially after being cooped up in a van for a day and a half (18 to 21 hours to be exact, depending on traffic) to get down there. I can sit around and relax at home the other 720 days when I am not in WDW. To each his own though I guess! :wave:

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I agree 100% with hrcollectibles, but I hear where you are coming from with your answer too. Personally, I have only been 3 times, with a 4th planned for next year. I am still in that "wanting to spend every waking hour in the park" phase I guess each trip. I just look at it as I wait 2 years to get to spend 10 days down in the Florida sun with my family and the last thing I want to do is spend it sitting at my resort when I only have a limited time down there. Especially after being cooped up in a van for a day and a half (18 to 21 hours to be exact, depending on traffic) to get down there. I can sit around and relax at home the other 720 days when I am not in WDW. To each his own though I guess! :wave:

Oh yeah...I definitely hear ya. I'm the one like you, we're here let's not waste a moment. I'd likely go from sunrise until they shoo'd me out of the parks if I could. But, the hubby has been so insanely stressed with work for the last couple years that getting him unwound has become a huge priority for me anytime we go somewhere. What has worked best for us is to get a move on early in the day, return to the resort mid-day to relax, then head back out in the evening. Time sitting out on our Contemporary balcony watching the world buzz in the distance is our favorite thing for relaxation. I'd stay in a MK view room at the Contemporary every trip if I could.

 

[Dwarful]

I think you hit on some key points. For us our spring trip we expect crowds to be heavy and know most of our time will be park time. So this trip we opted for Pop because we feel it is the best for our needs. Our summer trip we know we will have summer crowds, but it will be hot and the kids will want a pool break, so we opted to take advantage of the big discount and stay at the Yacht Club. This will have us close to two parks and give us a great pool

 

[JessicaB]

We always stay at the values. Mostly due to budget, but we really don't spend that much time in the room. Our favorite is ASM. We usually get a room close to the food court and buses.

 

[DaGoof00]

I think you just had a "unique experience" value resort food courts can be far away, resort buses can be crowded--very crowded; I remember waiting well over an hour at downtown disney for a value resort bus...

The landscaping, options and amenities of a moderate resort are EXTREMELY superior to those of value resorts....

 

[DaGoof00]

Although, i suppose it depends on how many times you actually spend at the hotel...

 

[LeafsFanNL]

A couple or three points.

If your first stay at a moderate had been at POFQ with the shorter walks and the superior bus service, you would have had a different perspective.

I found the rooms at POR and POFQ to be pretty much the smallest our family could manage. I can't imagine a week at a value.

We usually take a four hour or so break at the resort in the afternoon. I suppose commando style tourers wouldn't mind a value:shrug::shrug:

 

[MKCP 1985]

I suppose commando style tourers wouldn't mind a value:shrug::shrug:

When I've done the "push all day, go, go, go" route, I've generally found having a more comfortable bed at the end of a long day worthwhile.

Likewise, on those occasions when the parks close before the bars, I've found it nice to have a quiet place to sit and enjoy an adult beverage, whether it was in my room, by the pool or in a lounge - all of which make moderates preferable to values.

I've also noticed the number of loud people running around outside the rooms and interfering with that restful night's sleep are more prevalent at the values, so there's another check in favor of the moderates.

But yeah, if you don't mind a longer wait for the bus back to the hotel and you are truly just going to crash on the bed the moment you get to the room, then go value.

or sleep in your car. :lol:

 

[WDW_Emily]

Yes and No.

Do I prefer Pop over Caribbean(only mod i've stayed at)? YES
Do I prefer All Star over Caribbean? NO

 

[pax_65]

I think a big part of this discussion is the quality of the bus service. I used to stay on property without a car, but I wouldn't even dream of doing that now unless I was staying at a Monorail resort (and probably not even then).

These days, Disney just doesn't seem to have enough buses operating at peak times going to the right places. If a bus is pulling up to a crowded bus stop and the bus is already full, that's a problem - unless there's another bus following behind it (which years ago there would be).

IMHO the quality of the bus service isn't what it was 10 years ago. But having learned the hard way (wasting good chunks of my vacation waiting for buses) it's not my problem any longer. I always rent a car no matter where I stay.

 

[cowanfamily]

I prefer the deluxes as well. If choosing between the Mods and Values I will take POP any day of the week. Mods are overpriced for what they offer. The overall themeing is poor as well. CBR felt like a Howard Johnson's in Nowheresville, USA.

 

[Wisconsin]

POP rules! Having stayed at CBR and POFQ (love the compact layout and themeing), it's not worth $70 more per night for better landscaping and slightly larger rooms. In our experience the housekeeping at POP was much better than the mods. I suppose it's the individual housekeeper and just our experience. I'd love to stay in the deluxes but I have a problem paying over $250 per night for any motel room anywhere!