Which Deluxe?

[amykissangel]

I'm not engaged yet, but my boyfriend and best friend of 11 years (dating for 2) and I are talking about getting married next summer, and of course, our choice for our honeymoon is WDW. Even though he firmly believes that every moment of every trip should be spent at the parks (and normally I agree), I feel that a honeymoon deserves some "specialness" and relaxation time. Is it necessarily worth it to spend $2,000 more on a hotel? Probably not. Do I want to? Absolutely.

I've been looking through everything. My dream has ALWAYS been to stay at the GF, ever since I was a little girl. But I look at the room decor (which is, dare I say, a bit ugly?) and really wonder if it's worth $410 per night?

The Beach Club and Boardwalk, however, look gorgeous. Is staying at the GF with the beaches and great restaurants and monorail better than staying at the BC or Boardwalk? And which do you think is better of the latter two?

Thanks for all the info - just a general pondering...:animwink:

 

[Ariel484]

Oh, gotcha! I forget how close DHS is Epcot. Do you end up walking to the World Showcase Entrance to Epcot then? I think that would be so much fun!

The view things kill me when looking at resorts - I would love a view of the 7 Seas Lagoon, but is my view really worth $700? I don't know. And not that I would ever expect an upgrade, but if it did happen, maybe we WOULD get a water view... ;~)

We were hoping for an upgrade but it just didn't happen for us ...oh well. For us personally it wasn't worth the money to pay for a different view.

Yep, you basically go out the back of the Boardwalk, take a right and pass Kouzzina and ESPN Club and the International Gateway is right there! :sohappy: The first day of our trip I got SO excited when I realized how close we were. For our next trip (June 2011 after a short stay at PORS in February) we debated trying different hotels (Contempory and AKL were high on our list) but we just love the Boardwalk area so much that we're staying again (only this time at the Yacht Club).

Switching resorts isn't a huge deal...my in-laws switched from the WL to the BW in November 2009 and their luggage was transported for them, though it did take a couple of hours to arrive, so if you do switch resorts, just prepare for that. I also think you need to do it as 2 separate reservations but there are certainly others on this board that know more about that than I do.

 

[amykissangel]

Yep, you basically go out the back of the Boardwalk, take a right and pass Kouzzina and ESPN Club and the International Gateway is right there! :sohappy: The first day of our trip I got SO excited when I realized how close we were.
Switching resorts isn't a huge deal...my in-laws switched from the WL to the BW in November 2009 and their luggage was transported for them, though it did take a couple of hours to arrive, so if you do switch resorts, just prepare for that. I also think you need to do it as 2 separate reservations but there are certainly others on this board that know more about that than I do.

I think walking to Epcot for dinner at night sounds ah-mazing!

If we wanted to get to one of the monorail resorts for dinner, do we just walk to Epcot and go all the way to the front to catch the monorail? Or take a bus to MK and hop on the monorail there? (Sorry, this just sounds like so much fun! Waiting for busses isn't usually bad, but for us to have the option of coming back to change every night before dinner or just relax in the pool - that's awesome! Thanks for all the info!

I'm thinking for switching resorts it would be easiest to make that an all day park day? That way you check out in the AM, are at a park all day, and by the time you return to check in, your luggage should be there...right?

 

[kverdon]

I think our 2 favorite Deluxe Resorts are Beach Club and the Poly.

Beach Club: Great location! Like others have said, you are a 5 minute walk to EPCOT for dinner or a stroll about the World Showcase. We love to spend our evenings in the World Showcase so its a great spot. Throw in a fantasic mini-water park in the front for cooling off in the afternoon and what's not to like? You can walk or take the boat to DHS and take a bus to AK. To get to the Magic Kingdom Resorts you can walk to the world showcase and then out through Future World to the Epcot Monorail, change at the TTC and then the Resort Monorail, or take the bus to the Magic Kingdom and hop the resort Monorail or walk or take the boat to DHS and catch the bus to the MK Resort from there. Lots of options though none of them are particularly fast.

Poly:

Great location and fun theming. The Poly also is a great location for visiting MK and EPCOT. We stayed in the Tahiti building and we were a less than 5 minute walk to the TTC where we could catch the Monorail/boat to MK or the Monorail to EPCOT. We found a trick was to take the Resort Monorail to MK in the morning as there were usually very few people in line for it. I believe that is because the resort monorail sign does not actualy say that it stops at the MK . If we happened to be closer to the main lodge then we'd just catch the resort monorail from there. Being that close is extreemly cool! We had to take my MIL back to the room from the MK and we were able to leave MK, get back to the room at the Poly and back to the park in 1/2 hour. To get to DHS or AK you take the bus. The Hawaii theme for the Poly is fun and might be nice for a honeymoon. In the evenings you can also watch the Electrical Water Parade and the MK Fireworks right from the beach.

Our third favorite deluxe resort would probably be the Animal Kingdom Lodge. With a Savanah view room, its like having your very own attraction right from your balcony. We've spent a few rainly afternoons just sitting on the balcony with a glass or wine, watching the animals stroll about. Combine that with 2 great restaurants and a good counter service place and its really nice. The downside however is that you are a ways away from any other park except AK and you still need a bus for that.

take care and have fun,

Kevin and Mona

 

[disneyrcks]

We are taking our honeymoon at WDW August 8th-22nd. We orginally booked the AKL for one week but decided to extend our honeymoon to two weeks. A wdwmagic member suggested where we may find some specials and we ended up booking the poly from the 8th-13th with a great discount. We are excited because we get to stay at two new (to us) hotels and experience a monorail hotel. We have stayed at BW and absolutely loved it (also had a BW view on top floor and could see some of Illuminations!) However we got engaged on Main Street and really loved the idea of being able to see the castle and fireworks from our hotel. We are also animal lovers so AKL seemed like a great hotel for us. When you go on your upcoming trip (hopefully your engagement trip!!) try to checkout the boardwalk and monorail hotels so you can actually see what they offer! Good luck with everything!

 

[ClemsonTigger]

I think walking to Epcot for dinner at night sounds ah-mazing!

If we wanted to get to one of the monorail resorts for dinner, do we just walk to Epcot and go all the way to the front to catch the monorail? Or take a bus to MK and hop on the monorail there? (Sorry, this just sounds like so much fun! Waiting for busses isn't usually bad, but for us to have the option of coming back to change every night before dinner or just relax in the pool - that's awesome! Thanks for all the info!

I'm thinking for switching resorts it would be easiest to make that an all day park day? That way you check out in the AM, are at a park all day, and by the time you return to check in, your luggage should be there...right?

It is quite a hike to the Epcot monorail station to get to the hotel, plus, depending on when dinner is finished, Epcot may be closed, not allowing you to cut through. Easiest way is if you had a car, but otherwise, yes, take a bus to MK, then monorail to resort.

If you are pressed for time, the other option is having the front desk schedule or call you a cab. There are cabs available on site with little wait.

 

[durangojim]

I proposed to my wife at the GF 9 years ago and it was a wonderfully romantic trip and experience. The BC and WL are our favorite resorts, but if you can afford to stay in a MK view room at the GF, it will be an experience you won't forget. The restaurants are excellent (especially V&As) and there's a serenity to the resort that the others don't have. Hopefully the service has improved because it had declined the last time we stayed there in 2007. GF ir BC you can't go wrong but for a truly unique time I'd stay at the GF.

 

[disneychic71]

You really can't go wrong with any of your choices. My DH and I honeymooned at the GF back in 1991 (yeah, I'm old!). It was absolutely amazing, and we have stayed there twice since. However, our all-time favorite Disney resort is the Poly. It is romantic, convenient, and less expensive than the GH, yet you are still on the monorail (great for returning to the resort for a little R&R).

Best wishes!!!

 

[disneylemons]

If you want on the monorail the Poly would be my choice - best theming.. the GF just wasn't our thing?

WL is more secluded and relaxing..

BW is gorgeous - we stayed there for the first time last Jan and I didn't realize how beautiful the rooms were ..and they were really nice sized rooms too.

Water view sort of depends if you'll be in your room much - plus you could always ask for an upgrade and hopefully get lucky.. I love having the water view at night - for the electric water parade then fireworks.. my favorite times!