Best onsite for teen and toddlers?

[sheryl2007]

:wave: I am new and this is my first thread ,I apologize if this has been talked to death, but here goes;We are planning a trip and want to know the best place to take 2 teenagers and 2 under 4yo ?? :lookaroun We have been to the All Stars and to CS, YC, what is everyone else's onpinion? Any thoughts ?

 

[Shaman]

I agree with all those that said Animal Kingdom Lodge....cool place for teens and toddlers...only downside is transportation (which isn't too big a deal)...but in my opinion it beats Grand Floridian as the best Resort in all WDW...

 

[optjay]

Wife and I split our honeymoon between Grand floridian and Wilderness lodge. We LOVED the WL and still do! We have since joined the DVC and now have a five and three year old. We all LOVE the Wilderness Lodge villas. Get a two bedroom villa, there is plenty of room and the lodge is an amazing place. It is surrounded by trees and has a indoor spring that feeds an indoor stream flowing to a cool pool with a waterslide themed with an awesome wilderness theme.

 

[Laura]

OK...I'll be the one to say it: RENT A VACTION HOME off WDW Property! I know, I know....but calm down!

Ideally, Disney would have a neighborhood full of these things available but they don't. They hold anywhere from 3-12 people and most have their own private pools, master suites, numerous bathrooms, full kitchen, garage, and BBQ areas.

The young kids can be inside sleeping while the rest of the family swims and hangs out downstairs.

For the price, the value can't be beat...YOU ARE GETTING A WHOLE HOUSE! Nobody ever dares to suggest these, but the more I read and write about them, the more they seem like the best deal for families going to WDW!

Seriously, check it out:

http://www.floridasunvacationhomes.com/property_vh.asp?CatID=3&ID=11554&AD=6/12/2005&DD=6/19/2005

This is the first one I blindly clicked on from a Google search. 4 Bedrooms, 3 full baths, pool, etc.....for only $1463 a week! There are TONS more listed on many other websites. This one was my first click. Do your own search for "ORLANDO VACATION RENTAL HOMES" and see what you can find.

Why would anyone with larger familes NOT do this??? :veryconfu

My sentiments exactly. We rented a vacation house once and it cost just the same as having a dinky hotel room in Disney, except we had a giant full kitchen, 2 living rooms, 2 dining rooms, 2 bathrooms, 4 bedrooms, a garage, a washer and dryer, and our own private pool! We got one from www.familiesfirst.com. I will definitely do it again sometime, it was so much nicer than being crammed into a Disney hotel.

 

[sheryl2007]

Thanks so much to everyone so far, your insite is great!! We have thought about the vacation home, but really enjoy staying on property, but the money saved on food adds to the value of a vacation home! With 6 people it really adds up fast! I did not know that you can book the villas for DVC, I have to look into that. What about the dining option? Is it a value?

 

[optjay]

If you do go with the DVC Villas and want to save money on dinning, stop at a super market on the way from the airport and use the fully equipped kitchen.

 

[sheryl2007]

pop century! i love it

I am totally unfamilar with Pop Century, although alot of people talk about it, where is it located in relation to the parks? It is one of the value resorts, right? Thanks

 

[sheryl2007]

The pictures are great!! Which section were you in?,I love the look of that quiet pool! How convient is it to the bus stop and food court? Thanks again !

 

[jordanyosh]

Sheryl,

www.allearsnet.com has great pics of all the resorts. You may want to go there for some comparison shopping.

 

[Aurora_25]

If you go for a DVC resort, you could always rent points from a DVC owner and it would be cheaper (from what I have read- we are new DVC owners and therefore never rented out or rented points) than just paying "cash" for the two bedroom- it's all on points that way.

Just another suggestion for you- plus you would have the full kitchen and the washer and dryer in the room so you could clean clothes if you needed to and not have to worry about change

 

[sheryl2007]

How do you rent out points from DVC members? Has anyone ever tried/done this?? I like the idea of the kitchen, but my husband says we will never be in the room enough to make it worth the extra cost, I don't know though. I think we would, but he is all for the "cheapest room". Any insights?

 

[Aurora_25]

How do you rent out points from DVC members? Has anyone ever tried/done this?? I like the idea of the kitchen, but my husband says we will never be in the room enough to make it worth the extra cost, I don't know though. I think we would, but he is all for the "cheapest room". Any insights?

Well, I know the Dis boards has a section on their message boards where you can rent points from DVC members and things. My husband is normally a "cheepest room" also, but honestly, the cheapest room for you won't be that cheap if you have to get 2 rooms. Renting points from DVC people isn't that hard- especially if they have rented out points before- they know how to do it. I think that they make the reservation for you once you both agree on the reting process, but I am not sure (again, I am new to the whole DVC thing as we just bought into it last month after TONS of reading up on it.)
If you need any help- PM me and I will try to get you the answers you need

 

[sheryl2007]

That is something I didn't think you could do, can you reserve any of them from Disney or do you have to rent from DVC members? Has anyone else tried this? Thanks again,

 

[weluvtink]

We got connecting rooms at POP Century in March and that worked out very well. My kids are 3 1/2 and 6 and we had our 14 yr old neice and 22 yr old nephew with us. We were able to go back to the room when we wanted and the older ones just hopped a bus from whatever park they were at back to the hotel.

 

[Aurora_25]

That is something I didn't think you could do, can you reserve any of them from Disney or do you have to rent from DVC members? Has anyone else tried this? Thanks again,

You can reserve the room strait from Disney- if there is availability. In order to rent points, you have to go through DVC members that already have points- Disney just sells the DVC points, they don't rent them out from what I know about it. Sometimes renting points is cheaper than paying the "cash" for it.

Hope this helps

 

[polynesiangirl]

I went to WDW with 7 people in the group last May and we stayed at Beach Club Villas (members of our party were DVC members though, so we didn't have to rent points.) Of course, as mentioned several times ealier in this thread, you don't have to be a DVC member to get a DVC room so you're in luck.

I would say that this is an excellent way to travel with a group - provided that you're all close and don't mind having to be in "one" hotel room together. Our BCV villa was spacious and had more than enough sleeping space - the location made for easy getting around for Epcot and MGM (we also had a rental van so we never had to wait for the buses, lucky us!) I think this location, while not *as* convienent in some respects as the monorail resorts are to the MK, would make for easy traveling with kids.

A note about the "would we use the kitchen enough?" question - yes, you probably will, if you make a small amount of effort. If you are driving down, or if you have some way of getting to a grocery store even once on your trip, you can pick up a bunch of food (we usually ate breakfast in the room and this saved us a lot of $$, as well as made the mornings less hectic cos we weren't rushing to all get dressed, showered, and to a morning breakfast PS on time.)

We also bought some food for the first night and just had a big feast of stuff we bought from the grocery store and enjoyed being on vacation with each other. Having the kitchen was also a GREAT way to store/freeze water bottles, or keep beer, wine, soda, etc cold for drinking out on the porch or in the case of the water bottles, taking along to the parks.

Just some thoughts - happy planning! :wave:

 

[sheryl2007]

Thank you so much ! thats the way I'm thinking, my hubby thinks we only sleep and shower in the room, why spend big money? Everyone's input is so appreciated! These boards are excellent, I wish I happened upon them years ago!

 

[sheryl2007]

We got connecting rooms at POP Century in March and that worked out very well. My kids are 3 1/2 and 6 and we had our 14 yr old neice and 22 yr old nephew with us. We were able to go back to the room when we wanted and the older ones just hopped a bus from whatever park they were at back to the hotel.

Thanks, this too is a great idea! I would feel better with the rooms adjoining. How did you work out the issue of the teenager/young adult's needs as far as rides go and accomadating the littler kids? This was an issue for us when we were there in March. I wanted to do both with the kids, it was hard to make myself and them happy.

 

[weluvtink]

Thanks, this too is a great idea! I would feel better with the rooms adjoining. How did you work out the issue of the teenager/young adult's needs as far as rides go and accomadating the littler kids? This was an issue for us when we were there in March. I wanted to do both with the kids, it was hard to make myself and them happy.

We did most things together since we all pretty much wanted to do everything. When the older kids wanted to go on something that the younger ones couldn't they either waited until we left or we did something else close by and met up with them.
On a side note- we had a cooler that you can plug in an outlet in the room($70 at Walmart)that you can also plug in in the car if you are driving and brought a toaster from home. This saved a lot of money for breakfast and snacks.

 

[v&adad]

Animal Kingdom Lodge, hands down. The teens will have plenty to do with the arcade and the amazing pool, with slide. The toddlers will LOVE the animals. Everyone will love the serene, quiet of the resort. We go every year, My wife, two kids (2,4) , my mother-in-law and myself. The rooms are very spacious and we never feel cramped. The last two times we went fridges were free in the deluxe resorts and we stocked it full. It took care of at least one meal a day. They have pack and plays for the kids. My 4 year old begged to have one of her own. Also, if you go every year, look into a season pass. We more then got our money out of it. My kids love to watch and "talk" to the animals. I don't care for the value resorts. They always are bustling with crazy activity and are loud. Check-in takes forever and it is always crowded. That being said, you have to stick with your budget. We have stayed at AS Movies many times, it's just much more caotic! You'll ahve a great trip no matter where you stay on-site.

 

[SpectroMan]

I find that teens have their own tastes. What I like or what another teen likes can be totally different. I have been on many band trips and on senior trip in Disney World. We really do not care most of the time, but if you want them to like a resort keep this in mind:

Awe factor is big. During senior trip, my friends and I stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, and as we approached the hotel, we were all in awe. They loved the giant lobby, the animals, the pool, the rooms, and the Mara (fast food restaurant). In fact, we still talk about the Mara. They loved the resort because the girls liked hanging out there by the pool.

Now, I am not just plugging the Animal Kingdom Lodge because all of us wanted to stay at the Grand Floridian. We also wouldn't have minded staying at one of the moderates either.

Look at your budget and where you are able to stay, and then go from there. Allow the teens to help pick the hotel with you.