Need help deciding on resort

[mrtoad]

We are in the process of getting ready to book our next WDW trip with Pam at Kingdom Konsultants and just wanted to get some opinions to help us choose.

This will be the 6th trip for me and my wife together and 2nd with our daughter. We have stayed at either Port Orleans French Qtr or Dixie Landings/POR on every trip. We have always loved staying there but on our last trip which was in Jan/Feb of this year we had a little trouble with the bus travel with our daughter. She would get to fidgity waiting and frankly it was a sore spot on our trip.

Because of this we have decided to stay at either one of the monorail resorts or the Wilderness Lodge on our next trip. We know that we will spend 65 to 70% of our time at the MK so the rest of the bus travel we will deal with.

We are staying 9 nights and had a few choices we are thinking of and would like some input.

We were thinking of one of the following scenarios:

6 nights Wilderness Lodge 3 nights Polynesian Resort with a lagoon view
9 nights Contemporary Resort
9 nights Wilderness Lodge (this last one we only thought about for the whole trip after reading the latest Disney magazine to find it was voted in the people's choice awards as their favorite resort on the property).

As a child I always stayed at the Polynesian with a castle view so I would really want to do that but I am open to other ideas.

If it were you what would you do?

Thanks for your advice.

 

[jcarriv]

With that long of a stay I would go with the split. 6 nights Wilderness Lodge 3 Night Poly.

 

[Chape19714]

i would do the split 6 night WL, 3 nights Polynesian, or split it more, for more varity by going 3 nights WL, 3 nights contempory, 3 nights poly. or something like that. Of the choices, i would do the split. WL is a great resort! you will love WL and the poly. have a great visit!

but getting to the MK from the WL is not as easy as if you were monorail resort. The boat comes, but sometimes has to stop at Fort Willderness first. If spending that much time at the MK, go with a monorail resort, and maybe 3 nights at the Willderness logde. have a great visit once again!

 

[GoofyFan1]

Personally I would do the 9 nights at the Wilderness Lodge. Great atmosphere, and I was one of the people that voted for the resort in the magazine. I love it. While it may seem fun to switch resorts, for my family, once we get settled we don't want to pack for another resort.

Whatever way you chose, have fun and enjoy your trip! :wave:

 

[swimmom]

I have stayed at all three resorts and I am partial to WL. The boat ride to the MK is quick and I'm sure your daughter will enjoy it. The wait for the boat can be fun on the boat dock. My daughter is now 15 and she still bugs me for money to get fish food to feed the fish. WDW has a way of keeping your kids young!!!

FYI - If you request a wooded view on the 4th floor or higher, you may be able to see the castle from your room. Some views are obstructed by trees that have grown quite tall over the years. If you mention a view of the castle, they may be able to come through for you. Be sure to make that request when you make your reservation.

 

[jojoyner55]

I cannot recommend the Animal Kingdom Lodge too highly - if you are into animals! A Savannah View room is - well, fantastic. Also the pool is great and Boma and Jiko are great restaurants (with the Mara doing duty as the food court). Can't say enough good about it!

 

[disneydawg]

I'd do the WL-Poly split. While I have never stayed at either, I am envious of your situation. Poly seems to me to be the best monorail resort and WL is constantly rated one of the top resorts on property. It may in fact turn out to be a hassle switching resorts, but it also may turn out to be the best of both worlds.

 

[jordanyosh]

We have never done a split stay, but we DO like trying different resorts every once in awhile. I would consider the Poly/WL split. It gives you two different experiences on the same trip. I may go with 5 WL/4 Poly though. Because WL is still tied to busses, you may run into the same problem as you did with POR/FQ. At least at Poly you have the monorail to get you to MK and Epcot.

 

[Kingdom Konsultant]

I think I am the only one who is voting for the Contemporary. Here are my reasons.

You are in the Magic Kingdom the most and you can walk there in 5 mins. from this resort.

They have Chef Mickey's
The food and fun center
Video Arcade
Heated Kiddie pool
Playground
The Monorail

Pam

 

[JaSnake16]

I would go for the Contemporary, particularly the concierge floor (Tower Club, not the 14th too $$$$) and ask for a park view. The view is not cast in stone but they did accomodate me when I went there in June and the view from the room was spectacular with the lagoon and the park. I had put in the request for the view when I made reservations. The split sounds great too but it would probably be the same money and would save you the hassle of packing, unpacking, packing, unpacking, packing in the course of 10 days.

 

[shuflemstr]

I would stay at the Contemporary. It is one of my favorite resorts because you are just so close to the MK.

 

[mrtoad]

Thanks all for the replies. My wife and I are still talking about it and hope to come to a decision this weekend.

Pam I will get in touch with after we make up our minds. We have stayed in the same resort our last 4 trips, so choosing is hard.

 

[wannabeBelle]

As others have said packing and unpacking especially with a child can be a bit muchg. That having been said is the cost of a Polynesian Room, Lagoon view an issue? If not, Id say stay there the entire time. The Monorail is the ultimate in ease. Never having stayed at any of these resorts though so I Am just taking an educated guess. Enjoy whatever you decide!!! Belle

 

[mrtoad]

As others have said packing and unpacking especially with a child can be a bit muchg. That having been said is the cost of a Polynesian Room, Lagoon view an issue? If not, Id say stay there the entire time. The Monorail is the ultimate in ease. Never having stayed at any of these resorts though so I Am just taking an educated guess. Enjoy whatever you decide!!! Belle

Hi Belle,

I would love to stay at the Polynesian with a Logoon view the entire time. When I was a child that is what we did, we stayed top floor, castle view and it was perfect but unfortunatly cost is an issue. If a good discount is out, then we could swing it but at normal prices I would have to go into debt for the trip which I will not do. If we can't pay for it right away, we won't do it.

If for some reason due to some dicount the Polynesian doable for the entire trip, you bet that is what I would do. I absolutly love it and my wife has never been before. The nicest we have stayed together is Dixie Landings, which in my oppinion is beautiful all the same. It is just there is something about being on the loop and looking out your window and seeing the castle which makes everything else pale in comparison. Which leads to another problem, are we hooked forever if we do it? I would take the chance if funds permit it.

I will let you all know what we decide.

 

[ClemsonTigger]

Two cents worth

Many good ideas that hopefully don't confuse the situation more.

I do appreciate the child factor (although my days with that concern are over) and applaud you for considering it in the planning. For the sake of a few dollars, some folks make their whole trip difficult.

While I thoroughly love WL, it may not be best for your criteria as busses are about average in performance there (shared with Fort Wilderness). You do have the boats which are a little better, and a fun option.

Far and away I suggest the Poly. It has a superior entertainment factor on it's own, is on the monorail line and is an easy walk to the TTA for other sites and Epcot. We were always so grateful to be able to take the kids back to the hotel midday for a nap before going into the evening, everyone stayed happy .

One other option I would suggest is a split with AKL. There is a special entertainment factor there and the busses seem to be quicker as I believe they are all dedicated (one stop).

If you were to do a split, I would suggest 6 Poly, 3 other as you can plan those three other days for MGM or AK where you have to bus anyway.

Don't have a negative thing to say, but I just never was fond of the Contemporary. Stayed there a few times and it was nice...just felt, I don't know, too much like a hotel. (sorry Pam). The Best thing about it is being able to walk to MK.

as for

Heated Kiddie pool - Pam

I thought they all were, and a little off color as well...

 

[HauntedPirate]

I agree with Pam - stay at the Contemporary. While my first instinct is the WL/Poly split, the fact that you are going to spend more than 2/3 of your vacation at MK is more than enough justification for the Contemporary.

 

[maelstrom]

I absolutely LOVE the Contemporary, and if you can stay in the tower, spend all your time there. Otherwise, the Wilderness Lodge / Polynesian split sounds pretty good. I'm sure that Poly with lagoon view is nice. I had a garden/(very) partial lagoon view room in Fiji and I didn't like it.

 

[mrtoad]

Hello. We have decided and booked 9 nights in the Polynesian with a garden view. I would prefer to stay in a lagoon view but I can't swing it. Turns out my wife really does not want to stay in the Contemporary because the resort just doesn't do anything for her. I am glad she finally told me, I don't want to have her not enjoy it. Though I am sure she would, but not worth the risk.

Does anyone know if when you get there, if they have lagoon view rooms available if they would do a free upgrade? Just a thought.

No matter what, I am super excited!

 

[CaptainMichael]

Disney, do anything for free..............I seriously doubt it, but I really can't honestly say yes or no.

 

[wannabeBelle]

I am so happy for you!!! That is awesome!! Make a PS for O'hanas for dinner one night. it is something to see!! Oh and make sure you go there VERY hungry because the "cousins" will feed you well!!!!! Belle