Help Me Choose Our Next Disney Resort!

Beckeroo

New Member
Original Poster
If you are anything like me you are always thinking about which resort is best for your next trip :)

Unfortunately my husband is not up for nearly as much discussion about the intricate details and pros/cons of each resort as I am, so I’m taking it to the people!

I thought if I share some relevant details about our travel party and plans, all of you experts can give me some insight on what YOU would do and why!!

1) We are a party of 4, two adults and two little girls age 3 and 9 (at time of travel). The little one may or may not still need a nap midday.

2) This will be our 5th trip to Disney World as a family with kiddos. We stayed at Polynesian (x2) Port Orleans Riverside (royal room), and Animal Kingdom Lodge. We loved them all, but me and my husband agree we probably would not go back to Animal Kingdom Lodge (although we are glad we stayed there the one time). We love Riverside and it’s bridges and calm atmosphere. We also loved the Poly but typically only stay there when traveling with extended family bc it’s not exactly in our normal price range.

3) We are traveling in February or March 2024 (will stay for 7 nights). I had had me heart set on staying at Port Orleans French Quarter, but just found their pool will be closed!! I know there are workaround (walk over to Riverside), but we are from the northeast where a trip to Florida will ALWAYS mean swimming, and hauling our stuff over to Riverside pool doesn’t feel like a good fit for us.

4) we tend to spend a good amount of time at the resort. My kids are up for rope drop but are dragging by midday, and may or may not be up for going back to the parks in the evening. As such, we want a resort with easily plenty to explore and keep kids happy (we found Animal Kingdom Lodge disappointing in this regard, believe it or not).

For this next trip I’m trying to be a big budget conscious, but really trying to find the right resort for us! For our budget, I’ve narrowed it down to the following options:

A) STAY AT PO RIVERSIDE - it’s familiar to us and we have always enjoyed our stay! Not excited about the multiple bus stop situation with an antsy toddler, but as a whole we’ve never had an issue with the buses at this resort.

B) CORONADO SPRINGS (Tower room or Preferred Room) - I like all of the dining options at this resort, but am not sure I’ll love staying in the tower, and I’m worried about having to walk all over in a regular room. The rooms here DO look great though.

C) SWAN or DOLPHIN HOTEL - I believe I can book a room at this awesome location at a cost similar to the first two hotels (I think??). The ability to walk to both Epcot and HS is super appealing, but I am really concerned about feeling like im leaving the Disney “bubble”
Every time I go back to the hotel. Any input on WHICH hotel you would choose?

If you’ve made it this far, BLESS YOU and I can’t wait to hear what you think!
 

the_rich

Well-Known Member
Not on your list and it's expensive but wilderness lodge is amazing. Of your list I would pick riverside. Coronado doesn't do it for me and swan and dolphin don't for being out of the bubble.
 

Tiggerish

Resident Redhead
Premium Member
I don't have kids, so my input is probably less than useful, but I've stayed at the Swan and didn't feel it was outside "the bubble", not when you can walk to two parks. The hotel is great, and even if it's not full-on Disney themed, I found it whimsical enough.

Hadn't been anywhere near Coronado until my last two trips, in September and December 2022. Visited the tower both times, and was really impressed. That said, I'm not sure it would be as impressive to small children.

If you won't have a car and will rely on Disney transportation, I would definitely consider the Swan. Or the Dolphin, but I myself would prefer the smaller Swan.
 

Beckeroo

New Member
Original Poster
Not on your list and it's expensive but wilderness lodge is amazing. Of your list I would pick riverside. Coronado doesn't do it for me and swan and dolphin don't for being out of the bubble.
I’m basically worried Coronado Springs won’t “do it for me” either 😂
 

bennyw01

Active Member
Swan and Dolphin is your best bet, you're still in the bubble, you wont feel like you're leaving it at all, in fact you will feel like you're slap bang in the middle of it.
 

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
If you go with Swan & Dolphin, and are a AAA (or Marriott rewards) member, don't forget to see if there are any discounts you can apply through either of those programs. We saved quite a bit on our Dolphin stay (on top of the already-lower prices) with a AAA discount!
 

tanc

Well-Known Member
old key west has always been my favorite resort, spacious rooms. although not sure what the pricing is nowadays, the resort is really nice. The bus situation in the resort itself is not so great, but the transportation to and from the parks is very reliable. I can't think of a time that a bus was terribly late.

this is unpopular, but I really just don't like the skyliner so I am biased for a bus. For me, I thought the skyliner was way more unreliable, but that's just my own experience.
 

buckeyegator

Well-Known Member
carribean beach gives you skyliner access to epcot and HS, plus from epcot go can go to MK by monorail, nice if you want to go back to your resort for in day rest. too bad about french quarter, but i would think access to riverside pool would not be a problem, being sister resorts.
 

NelleBelle

Well-Known Member
If you're concerned about the multiple bus stops at PORS, I'd skip CS. We stayed there a few years back and found the bus service terrible! We've stayed at PORS before and between the two, I'd prefer PORS just on transportation alone. Besides, PORS has the boat service that goes to DS. Another thing you might look into is renting DVC points?
 

Ayla

Well-Known Member
carribean beach gives you skyliner access to epcot and HS, plus from epcot go can go to MK by monorail, nice if you want to go back to your resort for in day rest. too bad about french quarter, but i would think access to riverside pool would not be a problem, being sister resorts.
Going from Epcot to MK would involve using park hopper, which you can't use until after 2pm.
 

Sandersfeld

Active Member
Have you thought about the Beach Club... kids might like that pool area,,sand and a priate ship slide.. and like the Swan/Dolphin you have the boat rides and walking distance..
 

UNCgolf

Well-Known Member
Stay with Riverside. It's the best value at WDW.

I can't imagine staying at any other moderate over POR; they're all significantly worse IMO.

The Swan and Dolphin is pretty nice and a good value, but the problem there is the lack of Disney transportation. That's an annoyance to/from any park (or Disney Springs), but especially bad for the Magic Kingdom since I'm pretty sure you have to go through the TTC.

this is unpopular, but I really just don't like the skyliner so I am biased for a bus. For me, I thought the skyliner was way more unreliable, but that's just my own experience.

I don't like the Skyliner either -- the Skyliner's presence at a resort actually makes it a downgrade for me and I'd avoid staying at any of them due to their reliance on it.
 

SteveAZee

Well-Known Member
I guess depending on your budget, I'd also recommend Old Key West since you mention spending time at the resort and also wanting things for the kids to do while there. If you get a one bedroom place (rather than a studio) you'll also have a full kitchen, dining area, and washer/dryer to use. The kids could sleep on the pullouts, and the main pool (as well as the one down Turtle Pond Rd) are fun along with the rec center, bikes, tennis, etc.
 

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