Where should we stay?

[gointodisney]

We are planning on going to Disney World in March of ’12 and with our then to be 2.5 year old (and hopefully grandparents) and need some trip planning advice.
I have been to Disney World and stayed at the Caribbean Beach twice and enjoyed it a lot.
We are now looking to book a trip for next year and are trying to figure out a few things.

We have been pricing out offers under the current free dining offer at both the Port Orleans (can not remember if it is riverside or French quarter) and the value properties. I have never been to either of these properties and wonder how they compare to the CBR. I am not concerned with the room itself so much at ease of getting to the parks (I really liked the busses picking us up pretty much right at our room at the cbr with the individual village stops) and the waits to get on busses going a coming. I think I remember seeing lines for the busses at the parks for some resorts and a bus coming, filling up, and people still waiting, we never had that happen to us.
Theo only thing I did not like about the CBR and this might be more of an issues this time with a small child was the walk from the village we were staying in to the main hall.

How do the Port Orleans and value places compare to the CBR?

Or should we stay off property and get a car instead of booking the package with dining from disney?

[darthmacho]

Personally, I'd stay on property if possible. I'd say POR compares favorably with CBR. It's a large resort with a nice cafeteria and a fabulous sit down restaurant. The pool is nice too. There are four bus stops,all of which are in close proximity to the guest rooms. The busses from the parks did get crowded at closing time, so I suppose waiting for a second bus is always possible.

As for POFQ, it is much smaller, cozier, and doesn't have a sit-down restaurant, but the theming is fabulous. It only has one bus stop, but as far as I could tell, it only needed one.

Both resorts have boat service to Downtown Disney.

Hope that helps. :mickey:

[Tygger7]

As far as Value properties, Pop Century is very nice for the money. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there, and you can't beat the price. One thing to keep in mind though: if you stay at a Moderate resort, you get the regular dining plan for free on the promotion; if you stay at one of the Value resorts, like Pop, you get the Quick Service plan for free (but you can pay & upgrade to the regular dining plan).

Personally, I would never stay offsite. We did one time and it was the worst experience EVER. You really won't save that much money if you have to pay to rent a car, and pay to park every day (I believe it's up to $14 a day now). Also, I don't believe you can purchase the dining plan if you stay offsite...but don't quote me 100% on that. I'm sure someone will come along to confirm.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

Are you all staying in one room? If you are I would think the POR resorts would be a good option because of the trundle bed.

[PopPhan]

Don't have much to add, as we have never stayed at either PO resort, but our nephew and his wife LOVE PO:FQ!!!

And one other thing....

:welcome: to INTERCOT!!!!

[Tigerinvestigator]

I would recommend the WDW Dolphin! If you have a nurse, teacher, gov't employee etc with you then it is a no brainer. The rates are usually fantastic and it is among the easiest with small children. You have boat transportation to Epcot and Hollywood Studios or it is an easy walk with a stroller. The bus ride to AK is short and the bus trip to MK is not terrible. Our kids prefer the Dolphin over any of the value or moderate resorts. They also have a character meal, love to eat at Picabu's and spend a fortune in the candy store and on ice cream at the fountain. I would check it out before booking any other resorts.:thumbsup:

[brownie]

:welcome:

gointodisney, welcome to INTERCOT!

[buddie]

A negative for some people with all the Epcot resorts is that they all share bus service with the other Epcot resorts to MK, AK/BB & DTD/TL. With DTD being the longest due to the 8 stops that it makes during the day.
MK service isn't too bad because they have two different buses that share the load, but they share with the other four resorts for AK & DTD.
All this doesn't matter if you have a car though.

[gointodisney]

Thanks for all the input. I definaly want to stay on property, was just toying with the idea od staying off property. The car, gas, parking and general hassle are just to much and take away from the fun I think.

I thought about the dolphin (does university faculty count as a teacher?, or ex-government employee still count?) but I think we want the dining plan (if we stayed at a value property we would upgrade to the 1qs+1ts meal per day plan)
I know we can not get it at those properties but what do you think price difference would for the dolphin and 1 cs meal and 1ts meal per day for 4 adults be compared to a Disney property and the dining plan?

[KarenP]

:welcome: to Intercot! I think if you have stayed at Caribbean Beach resort in the past you may be disappointed if you stay off site.

[gointodisney]

OK, So we decided that we are going to stay at a Disney moderate hotel.
The price difference between a moderate and a value with the upgraded dining plan is only $200 or so.

We are tying do decide between the CBR and the Cornado. The pool at the Cornado looks amazing (but it will be march, so probably not to much time there. The playground also looks nice.

It looks like the CBR was renovate in the past 5 or so years is that right? The video on allears.net showed flat panel TV in the room and that was not there when I last stayed there so I am using that as my indication.

[mrmcgiv]

CSR was refurbed in late 2008. We have stayed at both, that is a tough one though. I think I would have to say we like CBR better...we liked the beach feel to it, but we liked CSR too. If I have never been to CSR I may want to try it. The pool is fun, grounds are nice and we personally like the Pepper Market. I do not think you can go wrong either way. One last point to consider - CSR has 2 queen beds, CBR only has doubles. This may tip my decision in favor of CSR!

[JoDisney]

I enjoy CBR very much. I also have found POFQ is really nice. It is a smaller resort. The pool is great for younger children. It is not real deep. Also, it has recently been refurbished. It has queen beds now. They are refurbishing POR too. Some rooms are already finished. I find CBR to be a lovely resort, though. I just wanted to try the new refurbished one and totally enjoyed it. Going to POFQ early Nov., again. That resort was difficult to get but finally it came open and I grabbed it. Please note that the CBR is always a lower rate than POFQ. For some reason, I was lucky to get a lower FL resident rate on POFQ, but the next day the FL resident rate for the same room rose $125 for entire stay. I was just fortunate. Oh yes, my opinion on CSR is not a good one. Tried it twice, we will not go again. However, every person has their individual opinions. I did not like being that far out. I only liked the pool. That resort just is not one I enjoyed.

[Kairi_7378]

I agree with some of the above posters who have recommended POFQ. I'm not sure how mobile the grandparents you mentioned are but it was nice that the resort was so small and compact.

Of the two that you mentioned, I think that it comes down to a matter of preference of theme. It might be easier for you if you stay at CBR again since you know the resort. We just stayed at CSR with our DS (who turned 3 on the trip) and we were very happy with our stay. We thought that there were a lot of things there that he could enjoy. I haven't stayed at CBR yet, so I can't compare them.

[JWBurns]

I would recommend the WDW Dolphin! If you have a nurse, teacher, gov't employee etc with you then it is a no brainer. The rates are usually fantastic and it is among the easiest with small children. You have boat transportation to Epcot and Hollywood Studios or it is an easy walk with a stroller. The bus ride to AK is short and the bus trip to MK is not terrible. Our kids prefer the Dolphin over any of the value or moderate resorts. They also have a character meal, love to eat at Picabu's and spend a fortune in the candy store and on ice cream at the fountain. I would check it out before booking any other resorts.:thumbsup:


Can anyone expand on the comment above about being a nurse, teacher, or government employee?

I assume this to mean Disney extends discounted rates to these bookings? Where can I find more information about this?

[Jillirose]

Can anyone expand on the comment above about being a nurse, teacher, or government employee?

I assume this to mean Disney extends discounted rates to these bookings? Where can I find more information about this?

The Dolphin hotel is on Disney property and offers the discounts mentioned above. Rates are from $129 - $159 depending on the time of year. We have stayed several times and loved it! You get Disney transportation, but cannot buy the dining plan. The location is next to BC, and can't be beat.

[JWBurns]

The Dolphin hotel is on Disney property and offers the discounts mentioned above. Rates are from $129 - $159 depending on the time of year. We have stayed several times and loved it! You get Disney transportation, but cannot buy the dining plan. The location is next to BC, and can't be beat.

Would I need to contact disney directly for the pricing? I don't see it as an option when I go to book the trip.

I'm planning on booking for June, so these prices are likely not available then eh?

[Hammer]

The Swan and Dolphin resorts are run by Starwood, not Disney, though they are on property and you do have WDW transportation and other benefits like package delivery and EMH. You cannot purchase the Dining Plan or use Magical Express.

There is a link to their website at the top of this forum, as they are an Intercot sponsor.

[brownie]

Would I need to contact disney directly for the pricing? I don't see it as an option when I go to book the trip.

I'm planning on booking for June, so these prices are likely not available then eh?

:welcome:

Welcome to INTERCOT!

The Swan & Dolphin aren't Disney resorts. You can click here (http://www.swandolphin.com/rates) to access their rates and other information.

[renecat]

We have stayed at Coronado, Caribean Beach, French Quarters and my sister and her husband stayed at Riverside once. Our favorite is French Quarters. The pool is very colorful for small children. The boat to DTD is nice. We stayed for two nights at FQ in Nov. before we moved over to the GF. once our package started. We are staying there in April. The New Orleans theme is very colorful.