Deluxe w/ bus service VS. Value w/ rental car

[Pixie Power]

Which would you do?

I'm going in June (late-24th) to the beginning of July (1st) with my girls (12 & 6) & my Mod for an All-Girls Trip. I'm debating on whether to stay @ a Deluxe and rely on bus service or stay @ a Value and rent a car. Some days, I say do Deluxe & others, I say save a few $$$ and do the Value w/ the rental car.

If it were you, which would you do and why?

:help:

TIA! :mickey:

[#1donaldfan]

Have you looked into a mod????

I can speak for POR and the resort feels and acts like a deluxe ....

...the bus service is great, along with a zillion other things there....:mickey:

[Jasper]

Frankly transportation is just about the last reason I would use to choose between such different levels of resorts. Instead, I would suggest that you should look at what you want to do at the resort to make your decision. In other words, are you planning on spending a lot of time at the resort and using a lot of the amenities that are offered? Or, are you really just looking for a place to lay your head at night and maybe use the swimming pool for a little while?

If you plan on using a lot of amenities than go with the deluxe. If you are just looking for a place to lay your head than go with the value.

The Disney transportation system works very well so there is no reason to really consider that as a part of your decision making.

[wendy*darling]

Personally- I would say go with the Value and Disney transportation- forget the rental car.
The bus service at Pop is very good. They do not share buses with any other resort.

Most (if not all) of the Deluxe resorts do share the buses. They are great resorts- no doubt about it. But if you'd rather save the money for a special meal together- I'd go with Pop Century!

[Pixie Power]

Thanks to those of you who replied. I appreciate it and will take what you said to heart in making my decision. :thumbsup:

[biodtl]

I would do the deluxe and buses. Although I'm happy at values and buses. I know sometimes it's a hassle using buses, but the last thing I want to do is drive around when I am there.

[GrmGrninGost]

No doubt in my mind, deluxe and bus service (or boat, monorail, etc.). We always drive to WDW, but once we're there, we hardly ever touch the van. It's part of the immersion process to use the WDW transportation system! I would recommend one of the deluxes on the monorail route or Wilderness Lodge. For me, that is the way to go! :mickey:

[tinkerstinker]

Have you looked into a mod????

I can speak for POR and the resort feels and acts like a deluxe ....

...the bus service is great, along with a zillion other things there....:mickey:


I have to second this...and the rest of my family would too. POR is beautiful, and is very much like a deluxe at moderate prices. The bus service is not perfect, but we've never had any major complaints and the resort itself makes up for any thing negative about the busses.
As far as values go, we visited Pop once and were very surprised. Its a cool resort that's perfect for kids your DD's ages. My DD's really liked it. I'd stay there, but we have 5 in our family, and DH loves POR too much.

[Mom2princesses]

Go Deluxe! There is absolutley nothing like it. Disney transportation is fine and in fact when we drove last August to some parks it was actually better to take the buses. Besides some deluxe resorts have monorail service too or boat service.

For us with a little one we knew we would be spending most of our time at the MK. So having the monorail was fantastic. We could easily take a mid-day break without the hassle. Stroller wheeled right onto the monorail. The rooms are bigger and you get a queen size bed!

Have fun!

[DDuck66]

We live close by, so we always have our car...but we never use it unless we are going off property for something. It usually gets parked as close as possible to our room and there it sits for the next week or so. If you can afford the deluxe, then go for it. We usually stay at a Moderate or the Values (and love it) but are spurging this year on the Concierge at the POLY!!

[joonyer]

You don't need a car even at the values, the bus service there, especially at Pop Century, is MUCH more convenient that driving and parking. The wait is never very long and you get delivered right to the front of the parks. Stay at a deluxe if you want, but for the other reasons, because the bus service is just fine, if not better, at the values.

[OogieBoogieMan]

I don't get the logic. You can easily rent a car at MCO for less than $200 a week, including the tax, but let's call it $200 as an example. For seven nights that works out to $28 a day, which isn't going to get you anywhere near a deluxe hotel. In my mind if you are contemplating spending another $150-ish per night on the hotel, the car isn't much of an issue. Stay in a value one night and then rent a car, if you like the idea of having one.

[svarhall07]

you get the bus service at BOTH value and deluxe resorts. in my experience, it took longer for buses to arrive/depart from AKL (deluxe) than from POP (value) because there are fewer guests at AKL. Buses are CONSTANTLY coming and going from values because of the number of guests. I drive to WDW everytime, and once I park the car, I never get in until the drive home. I've done deluxes and values this way. renting a car would be such a waste of money because transportation is free no matter where you stay!

[Kairi_7378]

I'm not sure that transportation is a good thing to weigh when selecting a resort. The Disney bus system is the Disney bus system, no matter where you stay. I have had nothing but good service on the buses. Compared to SEPTA (Philadelphia's public transportation system) Disney is WONDERFUL. I marvel at the fact that they are able to move so many people every day. Yes, I know there are horror stories on the boards, but most of the time, people seem to think the transportation is adequate, and we have people who stay on all 3 levels frequently.

There are lots of other factors to weigh when selecting a place to stay. Are you going to be in the parks from opening to closing? If so, you might not be able to enjoy all of the amenities of a Deluxe resort. A mod or a value might be better if you do the parks "commando" style. If you want to take some time to relax at the resort, a deluxe may be better for you. (I'm a big fan of the PO resorts, also.)

There is a wide range of costs to consider with the Deluxes. WL and AKL are the least expensive, followed by the EPCOT resorts. If you are looking to be in either the EPCOT or MK area, Deluxe is THE way to go.

[d_m_n_n]

My thoughts are to go Deluxe and use WDW transportation. But let me explain how I came to that decision...

We always flew down and rented a car/van to get around to the parks, etc. We liked the convenience of always having a vehicle (there's a security thing with my DH). Anyway, DH does not like to fly AT ALL so on our last trip I gave in and decided to drive. Well, the DSs saw the bus and begged to let them ride it (we live in a rural area...public transportation is a big deal to them...and don't get me started on having a pizza delivered to our door :blush: !). Anyway, we started using the bus and didn't look at our car for 3 days!! We absolutely did not miss it at all...even forgot where we had parked it at WL!

Not to mention, at the time of year you are going, taking a break during the day will be easier with more transportation options (hopping on the monorail/boat to head back to swim during the day, etc.).

Anyway, that's my :twocents:

[Mickey91]

Deluxe definitely!:mickey:

[RocknRoller94]

Deluxe Resorts on the Monorail line; maybe the Contemporary or the Polynesian...