Value vs. Deluxe

[Bairstow]

Have you considered a moderate as a compromise between the two? You are still dealing with bus transportation but the rooms are a little bigger than value, the beds are queen sized (value has full size beds) and the themes are not cartoony as the values.

I agree. A lot of the moderates (and the DVC resorts that get priced like moderates when you figure out how to rent points) have their own unique charm.
The values, in my experience, don't.

I've at least visited every Disney resort and stayed at most of them.
In my experience there is a slight drop in quality when going from a deluxe to a moderate, and a biiiiiig drop in quality when going from a moderate to a value.

 

[dizda]

If you are looking to save money on lodging, have you considered the Hotel Plaza Boulevard area hotels? They are not Disney hotels but the rates are very competitive and most are affiliated with major hotel chains.

 

[LAKid53]

I personally think the best value-for-the-money options at WDW are Wilerness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge Standard View, and the Fort Wilderness Cabins. I don't find much value paying for the Monorail or Epcot resorts unless you spend a disproportionate amount of your time at the Magic Kingdom or Epcot specifically.

I'm sure this'll start a flame war, but the worst part about value resorts is value resort guests. HUGE families traveling with grandma and grandpa and ever member of the extended family, sports teams, bands, cheerleaders, etc. can make for a very rowdy and uncontrolled environment.

No, you're not going to start a flame war. That IS the problem with Values - large groups of young people as you mentioned (don't forget the South American tour groups). And the rooms are smaller, the beds aren't as comfortable, there's no coffee maker in the room, resort dining options are limited and if you stay at an All Star, you share the bus with the other two All Star resorts.

Besides price, there's a HUGE difference between a Deluxe and a Value resort. Larger rooms and bathrooms, more comfortable beds, better and more dining options, better transportation (relative, I know), more amenities (like that coffee maker), etc. I know, people say, "but we're only going to sleep in our room because we will be at the parks all day". Yeah, right, because you are going to be at a park from rope drop to "get the **** out of the park so we CMs can go home!". Especially if you have kids. After a day at the park, I want a nice, comfortable, quiet, hotel room to come back to to flop face down on the bed. And it's not going to be a Value.

But now that I'm DVC, it's always a Deluxe. Villa. With a Jacuzzi tub to slid into instead of face down on that bed. Heaven.

 

[LAKid53]

Well, sounds like I'm just going to have to increase your budget. My DH loves convenience and since our kids are small we do spend at least 2 days at MK.

Then, in spite of the construction, stay at Wilderness Lodge. It is cheaper than Poly, Contemporary or GF. And rates are probably discounted due to the construction (most of which is over at the DVC villas). It's a 10 minute boat ride from the resort to MK. Plus, your kids will enjoy eating at Whispering Canyons.

The Cabins at Ft. Wilderness are really nice (and the price would be on par with WL, even though Ft. Wilderness is considered a moderate resort), but transportation is not a convenience of that resort, which is why most people rent a golf cart. There is only one bus stop for the parks and Disney Springs and you have to take the internal bus from your cabin to the bus stop, unless you drive or have that golf cart. But you can take a boat to MK and Wilderness Lodge. But you still have to drive either your car, that golf cart or the internal bus to get to the marina. At WL, it's a short walk from your resort room to the marina to take the boat over to MK or Ft. Wilderness. And I believe a bus runs between Ft. Wilderness and WL.

 

[LAKid53]

Well the last time we went was last year at the beginning of June, but since my little ones will be going to school I think we would have to do it during the beginning of April. My husband has mention going during Christmas, but after hearing about how busy it gets I really want to avoid it. I guess the reason why I'm considering value (Art of Animation) over moderate is mainly because of bus stops and according to this site: http://yourfirstvisit.net/planning-...on-convenience/resorts-ranked-by-convenience/
According to the information here the most convenient that is not a deluxe is Art of Animation and Pop. I'm not sure how much of a difference we would feel. Our last experience was really awesome despite the fact that we had very little down time. We spent most of our waking moments at the park. It was pretty much get up by 6:30am and head to the park after lunch come back and nap. Then hit the parks until close, and then repeat.

The only difference between POP and the All Stars are the buses - the POP bus is just for POP. The rooms are the same.

If you can swing it financially, a family suite at AoA is a much better choice. Better food court, larger room, a kitchenette, two bathrooms. Like all Values, the décor is rather garish, but your kids will probably enjoy staying in a Cars or Lion King room. You will still have a bit of a bus ride to most of the parks, though.

 

[LAKid53]

Well the last time we went was last year at the beginning of June, but since my little ones will be going to school I think we would have to do it during the beginning of April. My husband has mention going during Christmas, but after hearing about how busy it gets I really want to avoid it. I guess the reason why I'm considering value (Art of Animation) over moderate is mainly because of bus stops and according to this site: http://yourfirstvisit.net/planning-...on-convenience/resorts-ranked-by-convenience/
According to the information here the most convenient that is not a deluxe is Art of Animation and Pop. I'm not sure how much of a difference we would feel. Our last experience was really awesome despite the fact that we had very little down time. We spent most of our waking moments at the park. It was pretty much get up by 6:30am and head to the park after lunch come back and nap. Then hit the parks until close, and then repeat.

I would strongly suggest to your husband that taking small children to Disney during Christmas is not the best idea. That week between Christmas and New Years is called Hell Week for a reason. Go find some pictures of the MK during that week on-line. People are wall to wall, and I mean shoulder to shoulder. The MK typically experiences phased closing. I remember seeing a notice on this website for this past Christmas that the MK implemented phased closing at 9:30 AM and didn't reopen to all guests until sometime in the late afternoon one day. Granted, staying on property means you will be one of the last guests to be refused entrance when a park reaches capacity, but when they have to implement phased closing, it's going to be very, very crowded with ridiculous wait times for rides. Go search, you will find those posts. My daughter's birthday is during that week. I would LOVE to spend Christmas at Disney, but we go earlier in the month to enjoy all the Christmas decorations and shows. And we visit after the Marathon Weekend in January (it's this weekend) for my daughter's birthday.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

We used to always stay at The Boardwalk, but we tried Fort Wilderness Cabins last year because we wanted to go multiple times this past year so we wanted a less expensive resort. We did rent a golf cart and the kids loved it. You have the boat access to Magic Kingdom and you can always take one to The Contemporary to get a Monorail to Epcot.

 

[LAKid53]

We used to always stay at The Boardwalk, but we tried Fort Wilderness Cabins last year because we wanted to go multiple times this past year so we wanted a less expensive resort. We did rent a golf cart and the kids loved it. You have the boat access to Magic Kingdom and you can always take one to The Contemporary to get a Monorail to Epcot.

And I think with a family, the cabins are a great choice. Having that kitchen (even though the newly renovated cabins no longer have an oven) is wonderful when you have kids. I enjoy dining in Disney restaurants, but after a few days, all I want to eat is something simple and light.

 

[blueboxdoctor]

I would akin it from going a Toyota 4Runner to driving a Kia SUV. Will get the job done and have you dealing with inconveniences that you may have took for granted with the nicer car (aka: monorail vs buses)

I mean, both of those are pretty much appliances, so your comparison... (well, really, I just find Toyota's unbearably boring for the most part, so perhaps your comparison is right, as I also find nothing special about Kia either). But for the second part of this comparison, the monorails are much better than the buses, no denying that, and you also get the boat transportation at the Poly, which is fantastic.

You will notice a decline in overall quality from a deluxe to a value. Nothing feels like it is falling apart or cheap, but it doesn't have that extra level of polish you'll get in a deluxe. The Poly has excellent attention to detail throughout and is decorated to the max, but something like the All Star resort feels a little stripped down, more basic. Plus it's further out, so you'll need to wait for buses for everything.

With deluxe, especially around Magic Kingdom, you get excellent transportation and it feels more like a vacation getaway. You'll still have a good trip in a value resort, but you may find yourself missing some of the deluxe features. Perhaps you may consider other deluxe resorts not on the main monorail loop? The Wilderness Lodge is a solid option and still offers boat transportation to the Magic Kingdom along with buses to all the parks.

 

[Minthorne]

If it fits for your family I say rent DVC points and stay at Poly. You get everything but daily mousekeeping (you do get trash and towel on day 4 and full clean on day 8)

Supposes August 9-18, 2016

Deluxe Poly village resort- standard view $4,700.25
Rent DVC points (14/point) and stay at Poly Villa Studio - Standard view $2954
Mod at French Q - standard view 2073.40
Go value at Pop - standard view $1414.16

 

[Tuvalu]

Monorail goes to MK and no where else. You can transfer to go to Epcot but the monorail doesn't go to two of the WDW parks.

The TTC is a short walk from the Poly where you can board the monorail direct to Epcot, no transfer required. And you can catch the MK monorail from TTC as well...ta-da, two parks!

 

[epcotisbest]

Monorail goes to MK and no where else. You can transfer to go to Epcot but the monorail doesn't go to two of the WDW parks. I always liked the boat ride from WL any ways over the monorail.

Park at TTC, get on Monorail, go to Epcot. Park at TTC get on other monorail, go to MK. What does 'Monorail goes to MK and nowhere else' even mean? And there are plenty of people who go to Epcot in the morning via monorail, take the monorail back then take the monorail over to MK for Wishes then they take the monorail back to their resort. By my count the monorail goes to MK, Epcot, TTC, CR, Poly and GF. To that you could add BLT, Poly Villas and GF Villas.
I am confused by your assertion the monorail goes to MK and no where else and doesn't go to two WDW parks. Three monorail lines.
Oh, good choice taking the boat from WL over the monorail.
Now, on a serious note, we all make mistakes...no big deal.

 

[epcotisbest]

Your going to drive to go catch the monorail? What's the point of that?

I'm talking about from the poly. You can get on the monorail and it goes to MK. You can transfer and go on to Epcot. You are still going to be on a bus to go to the other two parks. I'm not talking about walking or driving anywhere. MK to Epcot by monorail will most likely be slower then just going by bus to Epcot.

The boat from WL is just as useful as the monorail to get to MK, once at MK you can go to Epcot by monorail. Been there done that but faster to take a bus.

Have a nice day.

 

[Pghdrumr]

Once you have been in a Monorail resort, it is hard to leave. With little kids, for us, the bus system is an inconvenience, and you will notice that right away. To deal with the cost problem, give Wilderness Lodge a try. At least there is dedicated boat service to MK.

 

[fireworksandfairytales]

I stay in values all the time, but I've stayed at a deluxe twice now. It's definitely a shock to downgrade, however I think the values are well worth the money. You wouldn't have the monorail option, but you would still have the bus (and unless you stay at Poly, Grand Floridian or Contemporary you wouldn't have access to the monorail anyways). The beds aren't as comfortable and the rooms aren't as "fancy", but they're still nice places to stay close to the magic. If you're going to stay at a value, I highly recommend Pop Century over All-Stars. I hope you have a great trip no matter what you decide.

 

[Livelovedisney]

Thanks again everyone. After reading through all the comments and talking to DH about it we are going to aim to stay at a deluxe. He doesn't want to give up on the monorails. Staying at the Poly really spoiled us and so I think we will continue to stick to the Poly, Wilderness lodge, or the Contemporary.

 

[surfsupdon]

Thanks again everyone. After reading through all the comments and talking to DH about it we are going to aim to stay at a deluxe. He doesn't want to give up on the monorails. Staying at the Poly really spoiled us and so I think we will continue to stick to the Poly, Wilderness lodge, or the Contemporary.

Sounds good! And when your kids are older, consider a stay at an Epcot Deluxe for the proximity of Epcot, Studios, BoardWalk entertainment, and many restaurants and lounges. As an Epcot Deluxe Snob, we prefer the kids to be older and more mature, to not spoil the tranquility at our quiet pools and common areas.

 

[righttrack]

What resort you choose and what room you choose to stay in plays a big role too in your comfort and convenience. If you stay at Pop, you'll notice all the common areas are in one building, a central hub, accessible to all, but highly accessible from the 60s and an edge of the 50s and 70s. If you stay in a room there, it won't be as bad. Art of Animation has the same layout. I'd say that a value like this, is actually more convenient than a moderate like Caribbean Beach or Coronado Springs because the common areas you would enjoy are spread out too, like the rooms.

Surely the moderates have better facilities and less cartoonish themeing but that may or may not be a problem depending on your guests.

 

[DarthVader]

Aside from the Contemporary, I think the value resorts offer a great deal. I'm staying at the contemporary this time around, because it's one of those bucket list items. We stayed at the All Star Movies last November and it was great. We had access to all of the disney services, the food at the resort was good. It was overall a great time, all for about a 100 dollars a night. Hard to beat imo.