Need help deciding where to stay at WDW

[joesupra]

My wife two daughters ages 11 and 8 are thinking of going in December. In October 05 we stayed at Pop Century and Oct 06 Wilderness Lodge. We love WL and can only imagine how nice it will be so close to Christmas. However it is kind of expensive, especially in this economy where no job is safe. So we are looking for suggestions on where to stay. Of course we are spoiled by the close proximity of the WL to the MK and how cool is that boat! Our priorities are location to the parks, a pool with a slide(you never know sometimes you can swim in December) and reasonably priced food on the premises. I heard the food at CS is kind of pricey. Any tips or suggestions regarding accomodations would be appreciated.

 

[brent2124]

To get a pool with a slide you must stay at atleast a moderate. Your choices there are CS CB POFQ and POR. I prefer POFQ becasue it is the smallest resort and is just a short walk to any resort feature. The MOD with the best location to the parks is CB. It just got a Pirates themed pool refurb and will have POTC themed rooms available by your stay.

 

[pax_65]

I agree about the food as CS being pricey. I prefer Port Orleans Riverside. Nice rooms, food court on site, good pool, etc. I like the "Magnolia Bend" section more, but Alligator Bayou rooms have trundle beds which might be more comfortable as the kids won't have to share a bed. The CB is an option too... for whatever reason I've experienced a lot of noise there on several trips, thus my POR recommendation.

 

[Disneyfalcon]

I'm going to go with Port Orleans Riverside. You'll get a slide there, the Old Man Island pool is great. There is a food court there and a full service restaurant - Boatwrights.

Since you liked the boat, there is also a great boat you can take to Downtown Disney.

 

[coltow]

POFQ gets my vote. Pool has a slide, food is good and not "pricey," boat to DTD. Best of all it's small so no matter where your room is you are not far from anything. Plus it's very pretty.

 

[Shadowdawn]

I'm a ditto for POFQ. It's fairly close to Epcot and MK (we had a rental so it was easy). It's a small resort but it's very charming. I'm not sure what the prices in the food court were because we were on the dining plan but the food is very good. I would suggest building 5, right near the pool, lobby, food court and bus stop.

 

[rkelly42]

For me here are my suggestions

Deluxe: Poly
Moderate: POFQ
Valueop Century

 

[Jessie&Buzz]

I agree with POFQ. We loved it!

 

[pax_65]

Another thing to consider... my kids are 8 and 11 also. When they were really young we used to go to POFQ because of the slide. It is a very basic slide, short with just one turn as I remember, and they could handle it without much difficulty. Now that they're older, though, they like more adventurous slides.

As I remember, POR has a slightly more interesting slide - a few twists and turns. Nothing super dramatic but it might be a little better fit for the ages of your kids.

You can't really go wrong - both resorts are really nice. Also, if you're a POFQ guest I think you could use the POR pool - since they are essentially considered two parts of the same resort now. (I'm not positive about that, can anyone confirm?) So if your kids got bored with the POFQ slide you could try out POR, but it wouldn't be as convenient.

 

[Eyekimore]

I would also check the Swan/Dolphin. We've stayed there at Christmas time with a discount- that was equal to what we'd have paid at a Moderate. Not sure what what you do for a living- but they sometimes have teacher/miltary discounts. I don't know why- but I think I remember chatting with a nurse who got a discount. There is also a discount for US government employees.

Both hotels are awesome- lots of food choices- pool with a slide!

 

[lbrad]

I have stayed at both PO resorts. They are both really nice.
POFQ is smaller which is great...close to main building,pool (with slide), food court, bus stop. Boat to DTD or POR. Both are GREAT:sohappy:
Have not stayed at CS