Category — d. Where to Stay at Walt Disney World

THE PIRATE-THEMED ROOMS AT CARIBBEAN BEACH

Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is this site’s top-rated moderate resort for first-time family visitors to Walt Disney World.

It gets that position because it has a little more kid appeal than the other moderate resorts.

For example, it’s the only moderate where all the rooms have Disney theming. Most rooms at the sprawling and often inconvenient resort are decorated with a light Finding Nemo theme, but a subset in its Trinidad South section have pirate theming.

This pirate theming is pretty cool, but, given the inconvenience of Trinidad South, is not worth the extra $30 a night it costs (pre-tax, Fall Season 2012).

Moreover, by building these rooms, Disney may have put itself at the end of a gang-plank on the question of adding queen beds to Caribbean Beach. [Read more →]

This post on the Epcot resorts is one in a series about personal favorites. See lower on the page for more about this series.

FAVORITE EPCOT RESORT: DISNEY’S BOARDWALK INN

This site’s ranking of the deluxe resorts at Walt Disney World for first time visitors puts Disney’s Polynesian Resort first, Disney’s Wilderness Lodge second, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge third.

Among the Epcot resorts, all three come in last on the list of recommendations for first-timers, with Disney’s Beach Club Resort ranked best among them, Disney’s BoardWalk Inn ranked last, and the Yacht Club in between.

My personal favorite among these, however, is the one ranked last: the BoardWalk Inn.  Why?  Well, give me a minute, and I’ll tell you. [Read more →]

This post on the monorail resorts is one in a series about personal favorites. See lower on the page for more about this series.

FAVORITE MONORAIL RESORT: DISNEY’S CONTEMPORARY RESORT

This site’s ranking of the deluxe resorts at Walt Disney World for first time visitors puts Disney’s Polynesian Resort first, Disney’s Wilderness Lodge second, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge third.

I’ve posted previously that my overall personal favorite deluxe resort is far and away the Wilderness Lodge, with the Animal Kingdom Lodge my second favorite.

But among the monorail resorts–the three deluxe hotels linked by monorail to the Magic Kingdom–my personal favorite is Disney’s Contemporary Resort.

Why?  Well, keep reading…

[Read more →]

DINING AT DISNEY WORLD’S DELUXE RESORTS

One of the best features of the deluxe resorts is the often wonderful dining venues at them.

Some of these dining venues are better for adults than for kids; moreover, for every resort other than the Animal Kingdom Lodge it’s also worth thinking about options at other nearby deluxe resorts. (The Animal Kingdom Lodge has no nearby resorts.)  Sheer variety also has its virtues.

See the image for some distinctions based on these points. You can find detailed reviews of all the resort table service restaurants in the individual resort reviews.

A few comments:

• The monorail resorts–the Grand Floridian, Contemporary, and Polynesian–are just a short monorail ride from each other, so the great options at the Grand Floridian and Contemporary in particular are easily accessible from each of these hotels.
• The two resort meals included in most of this site’s itineraries are Chef Mickey’s at the Contemporary and the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue at Fort Wilderness.  The next best resort meal for kids is the Whispering Canyon Cafe at the Wilderness Lodge (this meal used to be in the itineraries, but I took it out a few years ago as part of a simplification exercise).  The Wilderness Lodge and the Contemporary are linked to each other and to Fort Wilderness by boat, so these resorts get an extra kick on the kids meals ranking.
• The Epcot Resorts–the Yacht Club, Beach Club, and BoardWalk Inn–are a short walk from each other and from the BoardWalk.  Those who have park hopper tickets and enough days on their tickets also have easy access from these hotels to all the dining options at Epcot.
• The Animal Kingdom Lodge has three great options, but is isolated from other resorts.

For more on dining at Walt Disney World, see this.

DISTINCTIONS AMONG THE DISNEY WORLD DELUXE RESORTS

• Disney’s Polynesian Resort. Only resort with both own resort monorail stop and in easy walking distance of TTC and its Epcot monorail. Only deluxe with no fitness center–guests are allowed to share the one at the Grand Floridian. One of only a few deluxes with no spa services. Strong kid appeal. At high end of room sizes.
• Disney’s Contemporary Resort. Only resort from which you can walk to and from the Magic Kingdom. One of only two deluxes with no on-site child care programs. One of only a few deluxes with no spa services. At high end of room sizes.
• Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort. Shortest monorail ride to Magic Kingdom; longest back. Largest standard room sizes of WDW resorts. Best adult dining among WDW resorts.
• Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. One of only two deluxes whose standard rooms sleep only 4. One of only a few deluxes with no spa service. Stunning kid appeal.
• Disney’s BoardWalk Inn. Greatest variety of dining options. However, breakfast–especially for kids–is awkward, and counter service is weak. One of only two deluxes with no beach or marina. One of only two deluxes with no on-site child care. In middle range of room size.
• Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. Only resort with close up views of many types of wild animals. (All resorts offer views of lizards.) Only deluxe with no transportation options other than buses. Only deluxe not on a lake. One of only two deluxes without a beach or marina. One of only two deluxes whose standard rooms sleep only 4. One of only a few deluxes without spa services. Stunning kid appeal.
• Disney’s Yacht Club Resort and Disney’s Beach Club Resort. Best pool (shared) at Walt Disney World. Wide variety of dining options, but counter service is week. In the middle of room sizes among deluxes.

This is the second page of this material on deluxe resorts; for the first page, click here.

ROOM QUALITY, FLOOR PLANS AND PRICING AT DISNEY WORLD’S DELUXE RESORTS

All standard Disney World deluxe rooms come with the basics–a couple of queen beds, a TV and a dresser or two, a mini-fridge, a table with a two chairs or a two-part desk and chair, and a closet with a safe.

(For more on what you get, see this.)

What varies is how these are laid out, what more you get, and decor.

The smallest deluxe rooms–at the Wilderness Lodge and the Animal Kingdom Lodge–come with little more than the basics.

See the floor plan.  These rooms sleep four, and while not as small as a room that comfortably fits two queens can be, they are not much larger.

Contrast the floor plan for the Grand Floridian.

These are the largest standard rooms at a Disney-owned resort at Disney World

Additional width and length creates room for an easy chair, sofa (that sleeps another person), and desk.

Hotel designers prefer adding length to adding width, since added width increases the square footage of interior hallways that needs to be heated, cooled, furnished, cleaned, and walked down, but provides little help for the biggest design challenge–fitting in the split bath.

But without more width, there won’t be enough circulation space to fit the couch.

From a design perspective, the Beach Club and Yacht Club are exemplary for fitting everything in without either excess square footage or any sense of the furniture crowding the room or being hard to get around.

As noted above, the split bath can be the hardest design issue.  A split bath separates facilities so that two or three family members can use them at once, but in its most common design creates an eight to ten foot long hallway between the corridor door and the sleeping space–wasted square footage.

Disney’s earliest designs present a curious set of thoughts on how to split a bath.

See the image–the baths in the Polynesian are on the left, and at the Contemporary on the right.

Resorts built since then segregate the sinks into one space, and the bath and toilet into another. This is why the whole bath ensemble can be nine to ten feet long.

So why does all this matter?

More square feet costs you more.  It’s a little more complicated than that, so I’ll come back to costs in a second, but for the moment see the image.

It charts standard room square feet on the vertical axis, and standard nightly room price (all prices on this page are after-tax weekday rates from the Fall price season of 2016) on the horizontal axis.

The charted points show where the deluxe hotels fall, and the red line is added to illustrate the correlation between square footage and nightly rates.

More space means higher capital and operating costs; but it also means more value, value that can be charged for.

But space isn’t the only thing going on here, as there are some correlations within the hotels themselves.

See the image, which orders the Disney World deluxe resorts by nightly price.

• The three most expensive resorts are not only the three with largest rooms; they are also the three monorail resorts, the most convenient hotels to the Magic Kingdom
• The three middle-priced deluxes are not only in the middle of the square footage pack, but are also the three Epcot resorts, the hotels most convenient to Epcot
• The least expensive deluxes not only have the smallest rooms but are also the least convenient of the deluxes.

So the deluxe prices charge for value: for convenience as well as size.

DINING AT DISNEY WORLD’S DELUXE RESORTS

This material continues here. I promise no more talk about square feet…

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This is the third page of this review of Disney’s Yacht Club Resort. For the first page, click here.

THE THEMING OF DISNEY’S YACHT CLUB RESORT

Disney’s Yacht Club Resort opened in November 1990, and in 2009 completed a major renovation.

According to Disney World’s website, the Yacht Club

“…[features] lush landscaping and the formal grace of a grand New England yacht club.

Designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern—known for his East Coast beach houses—this splendid 5-story Resort transports Guests to the summertime Shingle Style hotels of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. (Sister resort Disney’s Beach Club Resort is a more relaxed, pastel-toned edifice next door; the 2 share many amenities.)

Public areas, guest rooms and suites are adorned in dark wood and wicker furniture, portholes and simulated captain’s wheels. Cast Members are decked out in ship’s crew regalia, including navy blazers and captain’s hats.”

The architect (and former Disney board member) Stern on his own website also talks about the Yacht Club in its context with the Beach Club:

“While both hotels draw their inspiration from America’s architectural past, each has a unique identity.

The Yacht Club is reminiscent of the rambling, shingle-covered seaside resorts that were built toward the end of the last century in New England towns such as Newport, Marblehead, and Bar Harbor.

The Beach Club is lighter, more airy in expression. It is modeled on the many Stick Style cottages and resorts that could be found in towns like Cape May, New Jersey.”

(For more on Stern’s role in Walt Disney World, see this.)

Well, I have a couple of issues with this.

First–and yes, do laugh at me for arguing with Stern, the master, about his signature Shingle Style–vernacular Shingle Style has a few more curves than the Yacht Club. Rounded turrets and eyebrow dormers are common elements missing in the Yacht Club.

But more to the point–these two resorts just aren’t that different. [Read more →]