DISNEY WORLD-FLA
Apr 30th, 2008, 07:28 PM
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DISNEY WORLD-FLA
Hello Fodorites: I seek your advice. Travelling to Disney in w/ hubby and 5 yr old DD in Nov. and have some questions: 1) which hotel doyo uabsolutely love that has a fantastic pool scape? 2) which hotel has the largest rooms (NOT suites)? 3) is the meal plan better than us just doing breakfast and dinner everyday on our own? 4) where should I absolutely NOT stay? Where should I absolutely eat? Absolutely NOT eat?
May 1st, 2008, 04:34 AM
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With a 5 yr old, I'd stay at the Polynesian because it's on the monorail line or direct boat from the Magic Kingdom and it has a terrific pool. The rooms are large, I believe all have daybeds in addition to 2 queens or 1 king. I've never done a meal plan at Disney so can't comment on that. I think I read that to get the most value for the cost of the meal plan you need to eat at the "higher end" sit-down places rather than some of the more casual choices. There are so many different restaurants at Disney, it's hard to say where you should eat not knowing your budget and tastes. Eating at night with a 5 yr old can be tricky, no? Go to www.allearsnet.com for lots of information and menus.
May 1st, 2008, 04:39 AM
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The Yacht Club has the best pool. The Grand Floridian has the largest rooms and the largest prices. Yesterday, there was a post where a radio show host linked to his analysis of the meal plan. Try entering Disney on the search and see if you can locate. What times we have done the meal plan we enjoyed. I think the economics are about a push, but if the plan "sets you free" to be more adventurous in your meal activity it assists vacation mentality.
My favorite restaurants are Artist's Point in Wilderness Lodge, Portabello Yacht Club at Pleasure Island and Jiko in the Animal Kingdom Lodge. A couple other worthy mentions are the aquarium restaurant at EPCOT, the French restaurants at EPCOT, and Narcoosies in Grand Floridian for a pleasant setting to watch Magic Kingdom fireworks or the electric boat parade.
My favorite restaurants are Artist's Point in Wilderness Lodge, Portabello Yacht Club at Pleasure Island and Jiko in the Animal Kingdom Lodge. A couple other worthy mentions are the aquarium restaurant at EPCOT, the French restaurants at EPCOT, and Narcoosies in Grand Floridian for a pleasant setting to watch Magic Kingdom fireworks or the electric boat parade.
May 1st, 2008, 04:46 AM
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Your best bet would be to go to Disboards.com, where you can find all the info you're looking for. They have separate sections for resorts, dining, etc., and the posters there are more than happy to share their opinions.
May 1st, 2008, 05:19 AM
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We went to Disney when our daughter was 5 and we stayed at the Grand Floridian. I highly recommend staying on the monorail - it makes it so much easier to get around. If you stay at the GF, Magic Kingdom is the first stop (4th stop coming home). Our daughter loved the pool, although it wasn't one of those "playground pools." The room was large and comfortable.
As for dining, we haven't done the dining plan, so I can't speak to that. The restaurants we have enjoyed are the Whispering Canyon Cafe at Wilderness Lodge (very popular with kids), Jiko at Animal Kingdom (this is the nicest restaurant - by far our favorite food-wise, but it is not really for kids), the Italian restaurant in Epcot and the California Grill (this one is also more for adults than kids) in the Contemporary. Be sure to make ALL your dinner reservations as soon as possible because it is nearly impossible to get a table without a reservation, and they book up early.
As for dining, we haven't done the dining plan, so I can't speak to that. The restaurants we have enjoyed are the Whispering Canyon Cafe at Wilderness Lodge (very popular with kids), Jiko at Animal Kingdom (this is the nicest restaurant - by far our favorite food-wise, but it is not really for kids), the Italian restaurant in Epcot and the California Grill (this one is also more for adults than kids) in the Contemporary. Be sure to make ALL your dinner reservations as soon as possible because it is nearly impossible to get a table without a reservation, and they book up early.
May 1st, 2008, 07:15 AM
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travelbuff127-
The advice about making reservations at the best restaurants is very important. If you are thinking about dining at Artist Point, California Grill, posssibly Victoria & Albert's and a few others, make your reservations now!. It's that competitive.
The advice about making reservations at the best restaurants is very important. If you are thinking about dining at Artist Point, California Grill, posssibly Victoria & Albert's and a few others, make your reservations now!. It's that competitive.
May 1st, 2008, 07:32 AM
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We just got back - family of 4 with 8 and 6 yr olds. We stayed at a budget spot - All Star Sports - a very quick bus ride to AK, Epcot and Hollywood. Basic pool. Samll rooms but quiet.
We loved the meal plan! We could only get diiner reservations for 4 in the afternoon so our strategy was:
Cereal and milk in the room
One adult and one kid counter service meal at 11am.
Table service meal at 4pm.
One adult and one kid counter service meal later in the evening.
We ate our counter service meals at:
Flame Tree BBQ at AK (good ribs)
Rosie's at Hollywood
Cosmic Ray's at Magic Kingdom
All Star Sports Resort
Our table service meals (booked in advance:
Coral Reef (aquarium) at Epcot
50's Prime Time Diner at Hollywood (fun).
Crystal Palace at MK (great buffet - kids loved the characters).
We loved the meal plan! We could only get diiner reservations for 4 in the afternoon so our strategy was:
Cereal and milk in the room
One adult and one kid counter service meal at 11am.
Table service meal at 4pm.
One adult and one kid counter service meal later in the evening.
We ate our counter service meals at:
Flame Tree BBQ at AK (good ribs)
Rosie's at Hollywood
Cosmic Ray's at Magic Kingdom
All Star Sports Resort
Our table service meals (booked in advance:
Coral Reef (aquarium) at Epcot
50's Prime Time Diner at Hollywood (fun).
Crystal Palace at MK (great buffet - kids loved the characters).
May 1st, 2008, 09:14 AM
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Beach Club & Yacht Club share the Storm-Along bay pool and it is a wonderful pool. It is the only sand bottomed pool at Disney World.
Wilderness Lodge, Polynesian Resort, and Animal Kingdom Lodge all have very nice pools even if they aren't quite as elaborate as Storm-Along Bay.
The pools at the Contemporary Resort, Grand Floridian resort, and Boardwalk are nothing to write home about.
In the moderates - Coronado Springs has a great pool and lovely play area. Old Man Island at Port Orleans Riverside is simple but fun. Port Orleans French Quarter is more colorful. The pool at Caribbean Beach is going through a major renovation right now and will be closed until mid-September so I expect it would be very nice when you arrive in November.
For a 5 year old, I actually really like the Value resorts. The little guys aren't necessarily big enough for the water slides but they do love the bright colors and the pop jets. These resorts have some of the best Disney theming. Pop Century would probably be the best choice from the values although I also really like All Star Movies.
Wilderness Lodge, Polynesian Resort, and Animal Kingdom Lodge all have very nice pools even if they aren't quite as elaborate as Storm-Along Bay.
The pools at the Contemporary Resort, Grand Floridian resort, and Boardwalk are nothing to write home about.
In the moderates - Coronado Springs has a great pool and lovely play area. Old Man Island at Port Orleans Riverside is simple but fun. Port Orleans French Quarter is more colorful. The pool at Caribbean Beach is going through a major renovation right now and will be closed until mid-September so I expect it would be very nice when you arrive in November.
For a 5 year old, I actually really like the Value resorts. The little guys aren't necessarily big enough for the water slides but they do love the bright colors and the pop jets. These resorts have some of the best Disney theming. Pop Century would probably be the best choice from the values although I also really like All Star Movies.
May 1st, 2008, 09:26 AM
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If money is no object (or if you can go off season when the rates are lower), I'd absolutely stay at a monorail resort....the Polynesian, Grand Floridian or Contemporary. All three have water slides. You can WALK to the Magic Kingdom from the Contemp. and you can't get a bad view at that place.
While the Beach Club and Yacht Club share the best pool-Stormalong Bay-it is a WHOLE lot of work for the parents of little kids. It is a very large pool that is oddly shaped....you really have to move around a lot to keep track of a kid there. And the "lazy river" is very deep (8' maybe).
While the Beach Club and Yacht Club share the best pool-Stormalong Bay-it is a WHOLE lot of work for the parents of little kids. It is a very large pool that is oddly shaped....you really have to move around a lot to keep track of a kid there. And the "lazy river" is very deep (8' maybe).
May 1st, 2008, 09:29 AM
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Great restaurants:
Epcot -
Counter Service - Sunshine Seasons,and the Morocco counter service
Table service: LeCellier (book 180 days in advance. This is Disney's most popular restaurant).
Coral Reef is neat.
Avoid the food in the China pavilion & America pavilion. However, they are changing the table service at the China pavilion so it might get better.
Magic Kingdom -
Not my favorite park for food. We typically go over the the resort area where we really like Ohana, Chef Mickey, Kona Cafe, & the Grand Floridian Cafe. The cafes don't have characters or any type of gimmick - they just have consistantly good food in a pleasant atmosphere.
If we do eat in the Magic Kingdom we typically lean towards Pecos Bills for good burgers and a very nice salad or Columbia Harbour House for chowder. The Plaza restaurant has nice sandwiches. We always, always get the Dole Whips (pineapple softserve icecream) at Aloha Isle.
Disney's Hollywood Studios - we love Mama Melrose (Italian). Sci Fi Dine In is fun. For counter service, we prefer the ABC Commissary or the Flatbread Grill. We do NOT like Toy Story Pizza Planet.
Animal Kingdom - we always eat well here. Flame Tree Barbeque is yummy. Yak & Yeti is a good table service option. We also like Tusker House.
Resort restaurants: I already mentioned Ohana, Chef Mickeys, Kona Cafe, and Grand Floridian Cafe. Boma and Spoodles are good. We also kind of like Trails End for when we get tired of character meals or meals that are "experiences" - the food is just "normal" and good. Whispering Canyon is popular and the food is good but it is so noisy that we consider this an "arrival night only" option - I can't handle that much stimulation after being in the parks all day.
Earl of Sandwich is good and I really enjoyed Raglan Road in Downtown Disney. I liked Bongos Cuban Cafe - I've heard that the food isn't "Authentic" cuban food but I live in Colorado so I don't know the difference. It tasted really good to me.
Alot of people rave about Wolf Gang Pucks so I've gone twice. Both times I had a hard time finding anything on the menu that I really wanted and what I ordered was okay but not amazing. But it may just be me because it is consistantly highly recommended.
I don't really like Planet Hollywood. The building itself is amazing but the food & service have always been a bit sub-par when we've gone.
Epcot -
Counter Service - Sunshine Seasons,and the Morocco counter service
Table service: LeCellier (book 180 days in advance. This is Disney's most popular restaurant).
Coral Reef is neat.
Avoid the food in the China pavilion & America pavilion. However, they are changing the table service at the China pavilion so it might get better.
Magic Kingdom -
Not my favorite park for food. We typically go over the the resort area where we really like Ohana, Chef Mickey, Kona Cafe, & the Grand Floridian Cafe. The cafes don't have characters or any type of gimmick - they just have consistantly good food in a pleasant atmosphere.
If we do eat in the Magic Kingdom we typically lean towards Pecos Bills for good burgers and a very nice salad or Columbia Harbour House for chowder. The Plaza restaurant has nice sandwiches. We always, always get the Dole Whips (pineapple softserve icecream) at Aloha Isle.
Disney's Hollywood Studios - we love Mama Melrose (Italian). Sci Fi Dine In is fun. For counter service, we prefer the ABC Commissary or the Flatbread Grill. We do NOT like Toy Story Pizza Planet.
Animal Kingdom - we always eat well here. Flame Tree Barbeque is yummy. Yak & Yeti is a good table service option. We also like Tusker House.
Resort restaurants: I already mentioned Ohana, Chef Mickeys, Kona Cafe, and Grand Floridian Cafe. Boma and Spoodles are good. We also kind of like Trails End for when we get tired of character meals or meals that are "experiences" - the food is just "normal" and good. Whispering Canyon is popular and the food is good but it is so noisy that we consider this an "arrival night only" option - I can't handle that much stimulation after being in the parks all day.
Earl of Sandwich is good and I really enjoyed Raglan Road in Downtown Disney. I liked Bongos Cuban Cafe - I've heard that the food isn't "Authentic" cuban food but I live in Colorado so I don't know the difference. It tasted really good to me.
Alot of people rave about Wolf Gang Pucks so I've gone twice. Both times I had a hard time finding anything on the menu that I really wanted and what I ordered was okay but not amazing. But it may just be me because it is consistantly highly recommended.
I don't really like Planet Hollywood. The building itself is amazing but the food & service have always been a bit sub-par when we've gone.
May 1st, 2008, 12:17 PM
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If you are looking for a less expensive alternative to the deluxe hotels, consider the Coronado Springs moderate hotel. We've stayed there twice after 3 previous trips to deluxe hotels (Boardwalk, Beach Club and Contemporary). We would only stay at CS from now on. We love the pool and its nice water slide (not too wild for our 5yo niece), we enjoy the set up of the food court (though it has its detractors). The bus service tothe parks was quick and efficient and the route is not shared by any other hotel - unlike the Beach Club which shared routes with Yacht Club, Boardwalk and sometimes Swan and Dolphin. The rooms are not huge but do have a refrigerator and coffee maker (not all the moderates did).
Our favorite meals included Liberty Tree character dinner, Polynesian all you can eat dinner (find out when the fireworks are at the Magic Kingdom and ask for a window table - great view and they pipe in the music) and the Living Seas in Epcot (again ask for a table against the aquarium window - you daughter will love the fishies) - its a tad expensive but we were on the meal plan. We got the meal plan for free which was great.
We didn't love the bistro in France/Epcot - not bad not great.
Our favorite meals included Liberty Tree character dinner, Polynesian all you can eat dinner (find out when the fireworks are at the Magic Kingdom and ask for a window table - great view and they pipe in the music) and the Living Seas in Epcot (again ask for a table against the aquarium window - you daughter will love the fishies) - its a tad expensive but we were on the meal plan. We got the meal plan for free which was great.
We didn't love the bistro in France/Epcot - not bad not great.
