Planning a trip, need some of your thoughts

P0PC0RN

New Member
Hello guys,

I am planning a trip to WDW which will be talked about this Friday, so I could really use your help. I am not new to the boards or this site. I've been coming to this site for some time, but just decided to join the forums recently. I know there have been posts like what mine will be in the past, but I am going to be more specific since I know a lot about WDW and the resorts. Plus the fact of know my goals for the visit help too.

Let me explain a little about the trip so you all have a better understanding. This trip will consist of only friends, not family. It will be myself, my wife, a friend of ours and his wife, plus another mutual friend who is single. Our single friend has never been to Disney, but the rest of us have multiple times. We are planning to stay for 8 nights/9 days. During this time, we plan to visit Disney's 4 theme parks and both of Universal's parks. The only costs we are splitting is the room and travel from Orlando International to Disney/Disney to Universal/Disney to Orlando International. We know for sure that we are going to stay on Disney property, but we really don't know where yet. We want to find a place that will be most economical for us, but also a place we like.

So that brings me to my first question...what resort do you guys think would be best for us. So far, I personally have stayed at All Star Music, Caribbean Beach, and Port Orleans Riverside. We are not just choosing the resort based on sleeping there, but also what they have to offer. We do want a resort with multiple stops for buses, so that takes out the Value. We also would like to have multiple/less crowded pools. I personally would like a hot tub, and we all want one with a sit down restaurant as we will not be in the parks every day. So that leaves us with Moderate and Deluxe resorts. I've never stayed at a Deluxe before, but would very much like to stay at Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom Lodge as both look awesome. For what we need/want, does it make sense to spend the extra money for a deluxe? Would it be cheeper to just get 2 seperate rooms, or get a home away from home with multiple bedrooms? If home away from home, does the themeing get any less, or would it still have that Disney feel to it?

Next question is what days are best to do what parks? Do you guys find any park to be less crowded on a particular day? What transportation service would you suggest to use for our traveling needs listed above? Finally while in the parks, what restaurants would you advise to book in advance? We plan on eating breakfast at the resort, and then a sit down dinner at the parks. No lunch, but possibly stops here and there for drinks and small snacks like popcorn! Thanks so much for your help and opinions. I will take all advise and print out all of your responsed to share with my friends in order to make final plans. Thanks again.
 

wannabeBelle

Well-Known Member
P0PC0RN said:
Hello guys,

I am planning a trip to WDW which will be talked about this Friday, so I could really use your help. I am not new to the boards or this site. I've been coming to this site for some time, but just decided to join the forums recently. I know there have been posts like what mine will be in the past, but I am going to be more specific since I know a lot about WDW and the resorts. Plus the fact of know my goals for the visit help too.

Let me explain a little about the trip so you all have a better understanding. This trip will consist of only friends, not family. It will be myself, my wife, a friend of ours and his wife, plus another mutual friend who is single. Our single friend has never been to Disney, but the rest of us have multiple times. We are planning to stay for 8 nights/9 days. During this time, we plan to visit Disney's 4 theme parks and both of Universal's parks. The only costs we are splitting is the room and travel from Orlando International to Disney/Disney to Universal/Disney to Orlando International. We know for sure that we are going to stay on Disney property, but we really don't know where yet. We want to find a place that will be most economical for us, but also a place we like.

So that brings me to my first question...what resort do you guys think would be best for us. So far, I personally have stayed at All Star Music, Caribbean Beach, and Port Orleans Riverside. We are not just choosing the resort based on sleeping there, but also what they have to offer. We do want a resort with multiple stops for buses, so that takes out the Value. We also would like to have multiple/less crowded pools. I personally would like a hot tub, and we all want one with a sit down restaurant as we will not be in the parks every day. So that leaves us with Moderate and Deluxe resorts. I've never stayed at a Deluxe before, but would very much like to stay at Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom Lodge as both look awesome. For what we need/want, does it make sense to spend the extra money for a deluxe? Would it be cheeper to just get 2 seperate rooms, or get a home away from home with multiple bedrooms? If home away from home, does the themeing get any less, or would it still have that Disney feel to it?

Next question is what days are best to do what parks? Do you guys find any park to be less crowded on a particular day? What transportation service would you suggest to use for our traveling needs listed above? Finally while in the parks, what restaurants would you advise to book in advance? We plan on eating breakfast at the resort, and then a sit down dinner at the parks. No lunch, but possibly stops here and there for drinks and small snacks like popcorn! Thanks so much for your help and opinions. I will take all advise and print out all of your responsed to share with my friends in order to make final plans. Thanks again.
Hi there and welcome!!! Just to get started Ill address the transportation issue. Disney has a new service called Disney's Magical Express or DME for short. This is available to all on property guests and best of all it is free. Tjis is a shuttle service that will pick you up at the airport, take you to your resort & back again. They will also handle your luggage tranfer to your resort as well, so you dont even need to go to the baggage claim area to get your bags!!! I understand that you may want to leave the property, and I believe Alamo is located on property and will come to get you and bring you to the car center for free to pick up your vehicle. This may limit your costs as you may only need the car for 2-3 days not all 9!!! Contact Alamo at 800-462-5266 as there arent a lot of cars kept on property so you may want to reserve ahead of time!!!
Resort Selection, The Deluxes really are amazing but may be cost prohibitive. The Home away from Home are about the same price range, if not higher than the deluxes. How much privacy do the two couples want? How comfortable is the single person with sharing a room with a couple? I tend to generally go for the Moderates as I find they are the best combination between price, theming and amenities. Riverside is my personal favorite. I have stayed there three times in 2005 alone!!!
I will get back to you with some more information later on in the day!!! Belle
 
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Not that I could ever tell you anything that the wonderful Belle couldn't tell you, but...here's my two cents.

In April '04 I stayed at POR. It was great...seemed to have everything you wanted. Sit down restaurant, multiple bus stops (at least I thought it did), good amenities, a couple of pools. All around very nice experience.

I also spent...a year ago this week....my honeymoon at the Polynesian...absolutely amazing! With the recent refurbishments of the several buildings, I'm sure its even better...I know you didn't mention the Polynesian...but a deluxe is awesome! I must say that the convenience of the monorail is hard to top. My wife and I loved it....

The animal kingdom and wilderness lodges (if i remember accurately) are not quite as expensive as the monorail deluxes, so if you REALLY want deluxe...stay at one of them. But to be quite honest, I would agree with Belle and go for a moderate. The deluxe and home-away-from-home resorts are too much $$$.

As far as transportation, DME is great...and I also agree with Belle on renting a car for the days that you are going off Disney grounds.

Depending on what restaurants you would like to eat at, I would say, get together with your friends....plan your trip...make priority seating for every restaurant you want to eat at. You have 5 people in your party, so it may be difficult to just walk up and find a table. Of course, I understand that you may want to build some flex into the trip....and not plan everything out, especially with someone who has never been to the World before, but priority seating is a must for those *can't miss* restaurants.

I hope this helps...have fun...and make sure your single friend who has never been before has a good time.

Johnny
 
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Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
Let me see if I can help with your resort choice.

For the amenities you are looking for a deluxe will be your best bet but as wannabebelle mentioned a non discounted rate could really add up over an 8 night stay.

IMHO Animal Kingdom Lodge is the best resort on property. It has 2 hot tubs a quick service, buffet, 2 bars and table service restaurant. The only minor hiccup in that would be the African cuisine served at the buffet and table service restaurant. If anyone in your party is a picky eater or not a little adventurous in their diet the restaurants at AKL might not be for you.

For the resort it self the only way I can describe it is breathtaking.

If at all possible you will want to get a Savannah view room.

Now for the cost issue. The rack rate for most of the deluxe resorts are around the $300-$350/ night range but here are a few suggestions for shaving some money off that price. Travel off season which is pretty much when kids are in school and this will increase you chance of a discount being available. If any member of your party is a Florida resident they can book your rooms and if the Fl resident rate if it is available and it should drop the room down to the $200 level. Another option is for 1 member of the party to purchase an AP and reserve under the Best Rate program again if the discounts are available the rooms should be around the $200 level. Call Disney reservations (407) 934-7639 and see what discounted package deals are available. Last but not least you might try sharing a room that will sleep 5 but I would not recommend this. The rooms at AKL are not really that big and it would be a quite cramp with 5 adults unless you steeped up to a suite.
 
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CAPTAIN HOOK

Well-Known Member
Master Yoda said:
Last but not least you might try sharing a room that will sleep 5 but I would not recommend this.
I think that the sleeping arrangements are a MAJOR issue - I don't think that the single person would be happy sharing a room with one or two married couples - You don't state your ages but I assume that there are "privacy" matters within the bedroom and your relationships and nobody would want to be kept awake for any reason as this will cause great embarrassment. :o
I would seriously consider seperate rooms or a suite (increases costs) or stay off property and rent a 3 bedroom house nearby
 
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wannabeBelle

Well-Known Member
CAPTAIN HOOK said:
I think that the sleeping arrangements are a MAJOR issue - I don't think that the single person would be happy sharing a room with one or two married couples - You don't state your ages but I assume that there are "privacy" matters within the bedroom and your relationships and nobody would want to be kept awake for any reason as this will cause great embarrassment. :o
I would seriously consider seperate rooms or a suite (increases costs) or stay off property and rent a 3 bedroom house nearby
I agree with the Captain here... Coming from a Single person with lots of married friends, I would definitely opt for my own room to avoid any privacy issues. Just my two cents on that one!!! Belle
 
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nibblesandbits

Well-Known Member
For an idea of the best days to visit the parks visit

http://www.touringplans.com/BestDays.htm. This site is one of the best to decide on which day to go where.

Also, just so you know...from my personal experience...try to avoid the park with the EMHs...these parks are considerably more crowded because everybody goes to that specific park on that specific day. You would get to see a lot more if you had a park hopper pass, visited the first park of your choice for the day and then if you still wanted to visit the EMH park later that night.
 
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P0PC0RN

New Member
Original Poster
First, I want to thank all of you for your input. I also want to address some of the concerns most of you mentioned about the single person sharing a bedroom.

I want to say that the 3 males will be 27 yrs old and the two females will be 26 yrs old by the time we go. The single person is a male, so Wannabebelle, you are more than welcome to join us if you are in the area so the single guy has a ride partner (heh). Ok, all joking aside, all of us are really close, and the two married couples have no intention of doing un-Disney things while in the rooms or at any point of our trip for that matter. All of us are comfortable with eachother to sleep in the same room, but of course ladies and gents will get dressed seperately.

Our main concern is cost and what would be best for us to meet our needs. I know we can be in the moderates and they will meet our needs, but once again the question is if the deluxe price is worth it for what we are looking for? Also is the home away from home better than the two split rooms? Thanks again!
 
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Marge10369

Member
Having stayed at both WL and AKL there is no way I would try staying at either with 5 adults in the room. The rooms are small! Come to think of it where would the 5th person sleep? If you put a rollaway or aero bed in one of those rooms and you wouldn't have any floor to walk on. The Poly or CR would be much better because the rooms are much larger and have day bed.
 
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wannabeBelle

Well-Known Member
Hi Guys it is me again!!!! P0pcorn, I did a little more research for you in the way of prices. After a quick analysis, I Am still going with the two rooms in the Moderate thing. I used the Value season, 2005 room prices for comparison purposes only, to get a better idea of your exact rate, you can PM me and I can run up numbers as I Am working with Pam of Kingdom Konsultants as a travel agent thsese days!!! OK Back to the point, the rates are as follows
Moderate resort $134.00 a night
AKL Standard view room $199.00 a night
Polynesian Garden View $304.00 a night
Contemporary Garden View $244.00 a night
2 BedRoom Villa at the Beach Club $ 560.00 a night
1 Bedroom Villa at the Beach Club $400.00 a night
These prices all are rack rate and do not reflect ANY discount at all. As I said, this is just strictly for comparison. The nearest competitor would be one room at the AKL and I dont recall them having a pull out couch!!! I still think one room might be a bit cramped, even at the deluxe level which has some of the biggest rooms on property. Plus there is always the fun addition of 5 adults all trying to get ready in the morning with only one bathroom!!!!

As far as the ride buddy, when are you going to be down there I have a few trips planned in the up and coming months!!! LOL LOL LOL Just teasing there!!! Anyhow my vite goes for two rooms at a Moderate and I would vote for PO Riverside for all the amenities, pools, restaurants, etc. Belle
 
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