What resort for big group (single mom with three kids?) Suite or villa? Help!!

[Single Mommy]

This single mom is going to take her three kids (ages 6 and twins at 3 years old) to Disney in June of 2015. I'm speaking at a conference (so, yes the dates are set - ha ha) and bringing a good girlfriend with me who is willing to help make our small family dream a reality. I need a separate bedroom with two queen beds and then a living room with a pull out sofa. So far, I am the most interested in the family suites at the Art of Animation, a Jr Suite at Coronado springs (where the conference is), animal kingdom lodge villa (I just love the theme but this would certainly be top of my budget), or the wilderness lodge villas. So WHICH ONE? The girls are still in a double stroller. I would like a mini fridge (and maybe microwave if possible).

My concern over the art of animation (which seems to be the most economical) is that I'll feel like I'm staying at a chuck-e-cheeses. I need some degree of calmness and peace (ha ha). I know this is Disney and I have little kids. But I just need to have a little peace of relaxation for our daily afternoon siesta or nightly on site activities. My concern over coronado springs is that there won't be enough for the kids to do or enjoy. And then for animal kingdom lodge that the buses will take to long to get to the parks. And then for the wilderness lodge - how hard will it be for me to get the stroller on the boat to the magic kingdom every day? PLEASE HELP! Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[dreamfinder]

Well, any room on property should have a mini fridge now. And at the worst the food court areas should have a microwave you can use.

The AKL bus thing is a myth as far as I am concerned. Yes, the buses to MK may take a few more minutes, but remember that AK is far closer than to other resorts. I believe that the Unofficial Guide had a breakdown on the average park travel times, and AKL was only 2 or 3 minutes more overall than most of the other parks (comparing one day at each park, so 4 days total). Loading a stroller onto the boat shouldn't be that hard, remember they usually accommodate wheelchairs. I don't recall if they make you have the kids get out of the stroller and onto a non moving seat, maybe someone else can chime in with that.

If you are considering a villa, might I suggest looking at DVC point rental? Frequently the cost to rent points isn't much more than an equivalent room rental.

I would question how difficult it will be for you to get to your conference. Unless the other resorts you mentioned specifically have resort to resort transportation setup for convention attendees, you would either need to plan on getting a cab to get to/from, or plan on spending an hour or more transferring from your resort, to a theme park/DTD, then to CS.

 

[Weather_Lady]

I think Coronado Springs would be the most convenient under the scenario you describe. You'll enjoy the peace and the classier decor, the kids will love the amazing feature pool, and you won't have to mess around with trying to get transportation to/from your speaking engagement. If the budget is a concern, you might also want to compare the relative costs of a junior suite and two connecting standard rooms, if that would suit you.

 

[Single Mommy]

I actually only need to go to the conference hotel (coronado springs) one day. So I'm not totally worried about being tied there.

Can anyone tell me if a stroller can go right on the boat from wilderness lodge villas?

What is this renting points thing?

Abby

 

[Single Mommy]

If you are considering a villa, might I suggest looking at DVC point rental? Frequently the cost to rent points isn't much more than an equivalent room rental.

Can anyone tell me more about this DVC point rental?

 

[ParentsOf4]

Can anyone tell me more about this DVC point rental?

This is a reference to renting Disney Vacation Club (DVC) points from an existing DVC member.

DVC is Disney's version of a timeshare. DVC members "buy" points at a "Home Resort" from Disney and then pay annual Maintenance Fees (MF) to maintain these points.

DVC members use their points to book stays at DVC resorts. Current DVC resorts at WDW are:

• Old Key West (OKW)
• Boardwalk Villas (BWV)
• Villas at the Wilderness Lodge (VWL)
• Beach Club Villas (BCV)
• Saratoga Springs Resort (SSR)
• Animal Kingdom Villas (AKV)
• Bay Lake Tower (BLT) at the Contemporary
• Villas at the Grand Floridian (VGF)

All of these are Disney owned hotels.

There are 4 basic levels of room:

• Studio - a hotel room with a queen bed and sleeper sofa (sleeps 4, 1 bathroom)
• One Bedroom Villa - 2 rooms - a master bedroom with king bed and a combined living room/kitchen with pullout bed (most sleep 4, some sleep 5, most have 1 bathroom, some have 2 bathrooms)
• Two Bedroom Villa - 3 rooms - basically a combined Studio and One Bedroom Villa
• Grand Villa - 3 bedrooms, a large living room, kitchen (sleeps 12, 3 or 4 bathrooms)

Sometimes, DVC members decide not to use their points. Instead, they "rent" them to someone else.

DVC members are not allowed to maintain their own websites to rent points. Therefore, brokers such as David's DVC Rental act as intermediaries between DVC member and renter, charging $14/point. Points often can be rented for less, with a bit of searching.

In early June, a "Standard View" 2-bedroom villa at AKV is 35 to 46 points per night, depending on weekend/weekday and early vs. late June.

A "Standard View" is either a view of the parking lot or the pool. If you ask for a "pool view", you often get it.

For reference, 35 points/night equates to $490/night (35 X 14) for a 2-bedroom villa.

With a bit of luck, you might be able to find points for $10/point or less, which can greatly reduce the cost, bringing it close to the cost of an Art Of Animation (AOA) Family Suite.

In terms of size, a DVC 2-bedroom villa has about twice the square footage as a Value Resort Family Suite, such as the one at AOA.

If these prices are more than you want to spend, then please see my post about Wyndham Bonnet Creek.

Any of the Value Resorts (e.g. AOA ) can be chaotic. At times, it feels as if you are being treated like cattle and yeah, the game rooms at the Value Resorts have a Chuck-e-Cheese feel to them.

Coronado Springs Resort (CSR) is a lovely resort, but it can be a long walk to the pool. Given the age of your children, I suspect it's where you'd spend most of your time so I wouldn't worry too much about what else there is to do at the hotel.

AKV has a "spared no expense" feel to it. Arguably, it's WDW's best. It's location can be a drag. It's tucked away in the southwest corner of WDW, far from most of the theme parks.

AKV consists of two completely separate hotels: Jambo House and Kidani Village. Jambo House is the main hotel and is more interesting. Kidani Village is more sedate, almost too sedate. A bus shuttle runs between the two but, having stayed at both several times, I'm pretty sure you'd be happier with Jambo House.

You could try to get a 2-bedroom villa at Bay Lake Tower (BLT), within walking distance of the Magic Kingdom. However, this is a popular location and hard to book. You'd definitely want to go thru David's DVC Rental if you go this route, which means spending $14/point. You'd also likely end up in a "Lake View", which is 48-63 points-per-night, coming out to at least $672/night.

 

[SCB502]

I actually only need to go to the conference hotel (coronado springs) one day. So I'm not totally worried about being tied there.

Can anyone tell me if a stroller can go right on the boat from wilderness lodge villas?

What is this renting points thing?

Abby

We used to use a double wide jogging stroller and it would fit on the big boat to the Magic Kingdom and the kids do not need to get out. It was a tight squeeze but it would fit. You will need to stand with it by where the boat captain goes up the stairs, you will not be able to get to the seats. On the smaller boats that go resort to resort you will need to fold up the stroller.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Can anyone tell me if a stroller can go right on the boat from wilderness lodge villas?

Abby

Usually, yes. They have two types of boat. The larger boat they usually send allows strollers to come right on. If they send a smaller boat, though, you have to fold up the stroller. That was very infrequent for us, this year. It was usually the bigger boat.