Where to Stay?!?!?!?

[Beckettsmom]

Hi- I''m new to this so if I make mistakes sorry!
I am trying to plan early- we are going to WDW in late April 09. I haven't been there since I was 9- 30 years ago! Our kids will be 3 and 4 at the time. And I REALLY want this to be a 'Magical' experience for them. I am overwhelmed at all the places to stay. Can someone give me some good guidance on kid friendly places? And any other kid friendly tips I'll take them too!!
thanks!

[Lisaj13]

Welcome to Intercot!

Everyone has their favorites for different reasons. I recommend Port Orleans French Quarter for several.

First off is size. It doesn't matter where your room is it'll be close to the pool, food court, bus stop, etc. I think a small resort is easier on the feet.

The pool is great, and kids love the theme. Adults love the hot tub!

The food court has lots of kid friendly food and enough variety to keep it interesting.

The boat ride to Downtown Disney is beautiful.

Beignets!

If I could afford it I would choose a resort on the monorail, but I found the bus service just fine.

I'm sure you'll have a great time wherever you stay.

[disneymom15]

:welcome: We always stay at the value resorts. Our favorite is POP,then ASmovies, toss up between ASsports and ASmusic. We can't see spending the extra money for mod or deluxe. I'm sure you'll get many opinions on where to stay.

[mdricks]

First trip for the kiddies. Super fun. The look on a child's face when they see the castle for the first time! :cloud9:

Where to stay? It depends. The amount of $$$ you are willing to spend is really the key.

POFQ is my personal fave as well.

Your best bet is to talk to the folks at Magical Journeys. Look up on this page to the left under the column ICOT sponsors. They do great work, get you the best price, and it costs you nothing.

As for tips with kids.....
1. rent (or take) a stroller.
2. Eat at least one character meal. Chef Mickey's is great as is Crystal palace breakfast.
3. At 3 and 4 your kids will get more out of MK then any other park, go early (rope drop) to get on the best kid rides, other wise you will be standing in line.
4. Take a break in the afternoon to relax at the resort. Grumpy kids at the parks are no fun.
5. Take a backpack with snacks and water and moleskin (look it up).
6. Put a wet washcloth in a Ziploc bag and freeze it over night. The cool rag on a hot day in the park will be a godsend to a hot and tired little one.
7. Do you have girls? If so get up to the castle right before the rope drops. As soon as it drops head for Tinkerbelle's Treasures (small store on the left when you exit the caste towards fantasy land) Tell the CM in the store that you want to wake up Tinkerbelle. Have a video camera ready.
8. Boys? (and girls too, don't wann be sexist!) take the kiddos to the Lego shop in down town Disney. I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard a parent say "I cant believe I spent 75 dollars to go to the park when I could have come here for free". Then get Giheradellis(sp?) afterward.
9. After tom sawyer's island opens (about an hour or so after park opening) go to the island and help the kids look for paint brushes. If you find one take it to the CM operating the boat for a surprise.

10. the most important tip.....

Stay on this board and ask tons of questions. You will not find a more helpful group of people anywhere. :number1:

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

If budget is a concern, you'll be more than satisfied with any of the values (Pop or All Stars), I think they are probably the most kid friendly also....if money isn't a concern, skip the mods and go for a Deluxe. The Wilderness Lodge looks like fun, so does AKL IMHO, but I've never stayed in deluxe so can't tell you how kid friendly they are.

[mkymouse0206]

:welcome::pixie: Our first trip my dd was 3 and my ds was 7. We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge and loved every minute. That being said...the three year old could have cared less just as long as we were at Disney. We loved it so much we stayed there again our next trip.
We tend to look at two things when choosing a resort, cost and location. Our favorite park is MK and the Lodge is very close, a five min. boat ride. It is also one of the lower priced deluxe resorts. I am sure I would love the Poly just as much but that just isn't in our budget.
I just booked our upcoming trip for next summer and we picked the Caribbean Beach this time. We decided we wanted to try something new and my kids went crazy over the new pirate rooms. :pirate: My advice would be to look at all the different resorts Disney has to offer and see what best fits your budget and interest. Let the kids in on the planning! Disney's website will let you watch little video clips of each resort. If you find one that interests you google that resort and you will be amazed at all the pictures you can find on the internet.
Most of all...stick close to Intercot!! Have fun planning!!!

[shepherdgirl]

Just staying property is magical and practical. You can get back to your hotel easily if some or all of you need a break.

Our family's first choice is the Poly -- we love the atmosphere and the convenience of the monorail. However, that resort is expensive, so our second choice is the Wilderness Lodge. It has a great theme and you can get to MK by boat. Lastly, but still a resort we love is CS. The pool there is fun and the food court is good too.

You will have a great time at any resort!

[Bethis26fan]

We took my nephew when he was 2 1/2 to movies and he loved it. The themeing of everything and the big buzz & woody. We are taking him back and stay there again.

[mook3y]

:welcome: !!!

We have taken our kids the last 3 years, at
1 & 3, 2 & 4, 3 & 5.

We have stayed at Deluxe, Moderate & Value resorts.

To be frank, our kids were very happy and found each resort to be magical. :party2: They are much more happily pleased than we can be. :)

That said, they definately had a great time at the pools each afternoon, regardless of level of room. We take a break every day and spend a couple hours, swimming, resting and napping in the middle of the day. :woohoo:

However, the slides at POFQ and Boardwalk were definately a huge hit with the kids and they would ask all the time when we were going to the pool again when we were staying at those resorts. They were happy with the pools at the value too, but they do not have water slides.

Definately catch the opening of MK. Huge hit with our kids. Also the fireworks! :fworks:

A tradition we have started that the kids love is getting haircuts at the barbershop on main street in the MK.

Just the fact you are staying on property is a huge plus. Regardless of where you stay, your children will find it very :pixie:MAGICAL!:pixie: I would suggest paying for a preferred room if you go to a value resort. For us, it is definately worth $10 a day not to have to walk to the back of the resort! It can be a long haul at the end of a day and an even longer haul coming back to get drink refills at the food court for the family... ;)

Have a great trip! These memories will last with you forever!

[Mousemates]

We enjoyed each resort we've stayed at...Disney does a good job at all of them...but if you can swing it money wise I'd stay on the monorail.....great access to two parks...the least expensive room in this category I beleive would be a south wing room at the CR which aren't that bad price wise...you can move up view wise (and price wise) pretty much as far as you care to go.

But aside from the monorail you can also watch the electric water parade from each resort which 3/4 yr olds would love....or walk "home" to the CR which my wife still thinks is uber cool.

[Arielfan98]

Well Here's what you need to know. If yur looking for a cheap hotel, then go to one of the value resorts. My family and I always go to All Star Music, the pool is great! The game room is a lot of fun to play in. The food court serves delicious food. I never really thought All Star Music was magical, cuz I didn't think it was key, I always thought spending the day at the park was the best! Think about how much time are you gonna spend in yur hotel room, than the park? All you need is a place to sleep. If yur rich and need yur luxurious room or whatever, then I suggest you go to Corondo Springs, or Grand Floridian, not that I've ever been there. But the real magic is at the value resorts, take my advice I'm a teen myself, and was once a little kid. :cool:

[MichaelMouse]

Most important question: What are willing to spend on a hotel room? (excluding everything else).

Most Important decision in my own opinion: STAY on DISNEY PROPERTY to be part of the "whole" experience.

I've stayed at Disney's Value, Moderate, and Deluxe resorts. The problem is once you stay at a Deluxe resort, its hard to stay anywhere else. But knowing Disney is part of all the resorts, that makes all the resorts magical.

My family and I (wife and 16 month old) just visited in late July and we decided to stay at the GF. Expensive but if you could swing it, you will NOT regret it.

I tend to be attached to the Poly and GF, just my preference. Any resort you could see the castle from or has monorail access is a friend of mine. See what I mean, you get spoiled staying at Disney deluxe resorts. Good Luck.

Know that whatever you choose, as long as its a disney resort you will be fine.:mickey:

[playdead88]

with kids that age i would totally stay at a monorail resort or the wilderness lodge - quick trips back and forth to the MK and less bus riding :thumbsup:

:welcome:

[RALPH]

First, welcome to Intercot!:mickey:

You already got lots of good advice. My thoughts, there is not a hotel that is not kid friendly. It's Disney!

Since, you kids are young, you will spend a lot of time in MK. If your budget allows go for a MK hotel, or you can get some good deals on the WL and it is a boat ride away from MK.

[bruin1344]

If you can afford it - beach club, great theming, location, and pool

[eandrsmom]

We have 4 kids ranging in age from 9 to 1, and would recommend one of the monorail resorts if you can budget it. Being on the monorail line makes getting to and from MK a breeze. It saves lots of time if you decide to go back to your room for afternoon naps. (Something that I highly recommend.) Plus, at night you can watch the Water Pagent and fireworks from the beach.

[RALPH]

Knowing your budget would really help. It would narrow the selection down. However, if money is not a problem, the BC is wonderful.

[JenniferS.]

When our kids were 3 and 4 we stayed at Pop. It is really cute for the kids. They loved it. This year we are splurging and staying at the Contemporary. Standing in line in the hot sun at Pop took a lot out of my kids. We are excited to be staying on a monorail resort. Our kids are now 2 (first trip) and the twins are 5. We will be a MK the most and you can walk to/from there in about 5 minutes or so. So, if money isn't an issue, I recommend one of the monorail resorts. If it is, then I recommend Pop. They DON'T share buses like the All-Stars.

[Faver]

I too recommend POP! It's a great resort, and as mentioned, doesn't share a bus. You and your family will love it!

And remember with little ones a mid day break is a must!:mickey:

Have a terrific time;)

[KayDee]

First off,welcome to Intercot! Second, now is the perfect time to be planning your April 09 trip. Third, values are great resorts for their money but can be very busy. We have stayed at a few and we recommend AsMu. However we would recommend staying at a Moderate. The moderates are more money than the value resorts but in our opinion are worth the extra money. We find that they are generally less crowded, offer better location in WDW, slightly bigger rooms, usually double sink, fridge, covered areas for waiting for buses, some even have a sit-down restaurant, much nicer landscaping, nightly entertainment and generally the buses are not as crowded. With 2 small children we think that you would really appreciate what a moderate has to offer.

[mom2morgan]

I think you just need to grab a good guide and read the descriptions. The main thing to keep in mind is that this is Disney, so ANY place you stay will be very "kid friendly". We've only been once - stayed at Port Orleans Riverside and really liked it, so we're staying there again. If money was no object, I'd take a Savannah room at Animal Kingdom Lodge - but I'm sure we'd have just as much fun if we stayed in a Value Resort as well!

[PetefromRI]

Welcome to Intercot!!!!You've come to the right place for answers.So far all of the advice is good.I think little ones would love the values for the themeing.We've stayed at all levels and there are no bad resorts.My personal favorite though is the Polynesian Resort.It's on the monorail line,it's close to MK,it's near the monorail to epcot and you can watch the fireworks and electric water parade from the beach and then put the kids to bed if they haven't already fallen asleep and then you and your honey can sip wine on your balcony or patio and enjoy the rest of the evening.Can you tell that we've stayed there before?
It has two wonderful pools,one with zero entry which is great for the kids plus great dining options.If you can swing it then go for it.Check out info central here on intercot.There is plenty of info on the resorts and more.Keep asking questions,we're all here to help.