Which deluxe?

[wanderingdee]

we are currently booked at the Grand Floridian. We’ve stayed there before, I loved it, but my husband does not. Like even a little, we’ve had some bad luck on trips and he associates the hotel with the terrible trips, even though the hotel was in no way responsible for our bad luck.

So I’m looking at switching hotels, he would love the Polynesian, but the food there doesn’t really appeal to me. I would love the contemporary, but I’m not sure my 4 year old would love the pool. Beach and Yacht club are booked. So I was thinking maybe the boardwalk? It would save us about $500 which we could use to take the Minnie van to the water parks and dining reservations at other hotels. It would be a nice trip. But I’m not sure I’ll love the boardwalk, even though it makes the most sense. Am I missing some perfect solution? Thanks if you’ve read this far and for any advice you might have!!

 

[ErinTwinmom]

I’d do boardwalk and give hubby a fresh start. With the boardwalk entertainment area and how close it is to Epcot and Studios I think you will find there is a lot to love.

 

[Shellyb84]

Personally I don't choose my resort based on the food and I would not choose BWI over Poly. There are plenty of dining options outside of the resort. I do love the Epcot area, BC is our favorite and YC isn't far behind. Maybe keep checking for one of those? It gets a lot of love, but I just don't see the appeal of BWI, even though I love the area.

 

[Disneylover99]

I’d go with the Poly. It’s a quick monorail over to the GF and a quick walk back if that’s where you want to eat.

 

[FSU Girl]

I’d pick the Boardwalk. Before staying there I was really skeptical if I would like it, but I ended up loving it. It’s one of my favorite resorts, the hotel itself was great. I know some don’t like the clown pool, but the slide was really fun and it wasn’t crowded at all while the other hotel pools we walked by were packed that trip. It’s really nice being able to walk to two parks too and not have to rely on Disney transportation

 

[loves to dive]

I've stayed at every deluxe resort except WL and SSS (technically not a deluxe since it's DVC) and there is something to be said for all of them. CR is my least favorite, I just don't like the convention feel and it's just too, well contemporary, for me. We tend to stay at the Epcot resorts now for a number of reasons. My son is an adult and MK is just a half day park for us, I dislike being forced to use the monorail to get to Epcot, which we spend a little bit of each day at, we love being able to walk to two parks. Back when we started staying at WDW, the only resorts available if you wanted to stay on site were the MK resorts, back then Shades of Green wasn't a military only resort so we even stayed there a few times. Poly was our go to resort at that time just because when my son was young he liked the feel of the place. Of the Epcot resorts, at one time, BWI was my least favorite but after having stayed there a number of times it's actually grown on me (redrum hallways and all). Now we tend to stay in the Swan/Dolphin more just because they are so so much less than the Disney resorts and just as close to everything with a great pool area, good food and decent rooms.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I've stayed at the Poly and it was a nice stay but my kids were underwhelmed by the Poly pool. We truly love the Epcot area resorts though. They are a bit calmer than the hustle and bustle of the MK resorts. We love the walk to Epcot and the short boat ride to DHS. We did BC before and next trip I'm doing BWV for the first time. I chose it because it was the cheapest option at the Epcot resorts and it's going to be a new to us resort.

I would give BWI a try.

 

[Shanti]

If you have an issue with Poly's dining, then why stay at the Boardwalk, which has no dining in it at all? You can Minnie van from any resort...

But I'll say that both Poly and Boardwalk are great. Poly has monorail access, which makes dining at CR or GF easy. Both Poly and Boardwalk have great pools. CR is a nice resort, but it has a lackluster pool, so I'd avoid it if swimming will be a big part of your trip.

 

[jlnten17]

Poly is my favorite so that gets my vote. It is also a very short relaxing walk to GF if you need a "fix". I agree keep checking back on BC/YC if you'd like to try Epcot resorts. Availability is always changing.

 

[dmaxphil]

I'm also not a huge fan of GF. But not sure why the BW pool would be considered better than the Contemporary. Having said that, we really like the proximity of BW, BC, YC but with a 4 year old (and if most of your stay will be at MK), we'd probably stick with Poly or Contemporary in the main tower or BLT - we dislike the garden wing rooms.

 

[NH-to-FL]

DW and I have stayed at the Boardwalk many times. We stayed there on our first WDW vacation and just kept going back. We loved the theming and the location. Some will make note of the "creepy Clown Pool". We are not pool people so the clown didn't bother us. One trip we stayed on the Villa side and had a room that looked right out into the Clown. I found it fun to sit on the balcony and watch the kids spit out of it's mouth. But make sure your son will be OK with the clown.

Location is the prime reason the Epcot resorts are so popular. Being able to walk or boat to two parks makes it unique. Another important location point is that it is within walking distance of many food choices. Especially if you include Epcot. If you decide on an Epcot resort, make sure you have hoppers or AP's as you will probably find yourself wandering over to Epcot a number of evenings.

I suspect you will love the Boardwalk.

 

[ToffPrincess]

GF is my fave but if its not an option and it needs to be deluxe i would chose Poly as its on the familiar monorail loop and has the same distance to everything as you are used to with GF. But from what I hear, service is nowhere near as good and I think he’ll end up missing GF!!

 

[paradesintherain]

Any reason Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge are excluded?

 

[wanderingdee]

Any reason Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge are excluded?

I was definitely thinking about both. They weren’t my top consideration, but both would save us some money. My main concern with animal kingdom was it’s remoteness. I suspect my husband would love Wilderness Lodge. And my 4 year old would love the pool, I’m not sure why I’m having a hard time getting on board with the wilderness lodge.

 

[paradesintherain]

I was definitely thinking about both. They weren’t my top consideration, but both would save us some money. My main concern with animal kingdom was it’s remoteness. I suspect my husband would love Wilderness Lodge. And my 4 year old would love the pool, I’m not sure why I’m having a hard time getting on board with the wilderness lodge.

The rustic woods theme definitely appeals less to me than the African theme at Animal Kingdom Lodge but they’re both beautiful resorts with wonderful pools and dining options. I think the remoteness of Animal Kingdom Lodge is exaggerated. I found it much more time consuming to go from a monorail resort to Epcot than it was to travel anywhere from AKL.

Either way, I think WL or AKL could be worthwhile options!

 

[wanderingdee]

The rustic woods theme definitely appeals less to me than the African theme at Animal Kingdom Lodge but they’re both beautiful resorts with wonderful pools and dining options. I think the remoteness of Animal Kingdom Lodge is exaggerated. I found it much more time consuming to go from a monorail resort to Epcot than it was to travel anywhere from AKL.

Either way, I think WL or AKL could be worthwhile options!

Oh man. Now you have me doubting my Animal Kingdom choice. It would absolutely be the best fit for us other than the remoteness. Plus they have club level available that week which is what I really want.

 

[paradesintherain]

Oh man. Now you have me doubting my Animal Kingdom choice. It would absolutely be the best fit for us other than the remoteness. Plus they have club level available that week which is what I really want.

I say go for it! Maybe someone can chime in with their AKL club level experience?

Of course, you know your family’s needs better than I do, I’m just a huge fan of AKL, even after my most recent stay at the Poly

 

[paradesintherain]

Oh, though, I’m not sure when your reservation is... the Jambo House pool will be closed for refurbishment from September to December I believe. So that might put a wrench in it

 

[Lovetherodent]

Other than MK, GF is hardly right next to much pof anything. The resort monorail to Epcot monorail takes longer than the bus from AKL. I wouldn’t let the location stop me if that were the resort I wanted.

I like the Poly because you can walk to the TTC for the Epcot line, but would still probably pick BWI. If you have hoppers, the whole world showcase is your food option.

 

[wanderingdee]

Well I’m sold. Animal kingdom it is. We plan on spending a lot of time at the resort so we wanted a nice pool. We are going in June so the pool closure won’t be an issue. I’ll miss seeing the fireworks from our room, but I think it’ll be worth it. Thank you so much everyone for the advice!!