Wow - you have really stayed at all the resorts - do you have a favorite? I’m trying to decide between WL and AK and having a tough time!
I've stayed at both. For a no park stay, I'd do AK. Look up previous activity schedules for both resorts online. There is so much more at AK. I loved our stays in savanna studios. DH and I like sitting on balcony at night, seeing and hearing the animals... also love sitting there in the AM with a cup of coffee. (But the animals do get called in for checkups in the morning, so animal watching can be iffy.) So relaxing and out of the ordinary.
for this is what makes it so much fun...Sorry about your staycation being cancelled - but this crazy situation won’t go on forever thankfully!If points were no object it would be a cabin at wilderness lodge or bungalows at poly!! (Which is what we had for our 2 day staycation schedule for 3 weeks from now...and now cancelled)
Otherwise animal kingdom lodge!
Thanks - I was thinking of buying into DVC, so it’s not for any particular vacation - I just know if I buy into this I won’t want to go to the parks every vacation.
I love WL and AKL so much - when I found out they were designed by the same architect, it all made sense! Thanks for your detailed post - I’m thinking of buying DVC and still can’t decide between these two resorts. AKL is prob best for a staycation as everyone is saying, but I’ve never actually stayed there and don’t know I’d love it as much as WL - so tough choice!If you have it narrowed down to those 2, simply you can't make a bad decision. TBH. Actually that goes for any stay on WDW property.. But with WL/CCV it is also a very nice resort. Actually it's the same architect that designed AKL & also Grand Californian as well, so there
s a lot of similarities..Just the decor is different throughout the 3. @ WL, EVERYTHING is just off the main lobby, pretty much. Even your furthest room is not that far at all from anything, and they too have really nice CMs. The pools to me are a lil underwhelming, still nice mind you but not as sprawling I would say. The setting & vibe here is cool, and nature is at a plentiful. When utilizing the total grounds over at the campsites area, now that's what kicks it up a notch.. There are some good things to see & do & eat over there as well. We did a haunted carriage ride through the grounds there back in 2010 during Halloween, which was soo cool. The people staying in RVs and tents & stuff, decorate their campsites so elaborately, that in itself was worth the price of admission.
But once again, if I was NOT going to leave the resort, I'd have plenty to see and do at AKL. & like I stated earlier, the fact that it is away from everything, makes you feel like you're not in WDW....Some people like that feeling, some don't.. Even if you do decide to venture out, quite honestly the buses here have for the most part run flawlessly. a MK ride would take around 20 mins. HS around 8, while Epcot maybe 10, and DS around that as well. And AK would be a mere 5 mins.... Either way, enjoy in the process of choosing....
FWIW, We bought into SSR back in 2011, and our 1st trip at our Home resort was a 5 years later. We were able to use our pints at so many other resorts. As you can see, we've been lucky enough to have stayed at AKL/V on 4 separate occasions. Remember, Just because you buy into a certain resort, doesn't mean that you are religated to having to stay there. It just gives you that 4 month extra window to book... If you don't normally book @11 mos. out, then having a higher priced home resort is kind of irrelevant. Check into the resale direct from Disney, and see if any other contracts possibly to buy?
Unless of course, you wanted a true Home resort where you'll be spending much of your time....I‘m familiar with that (the Beaches & Cream part, not the running lol)
I love the WL too - but what would you do there all day if not in the parks?
Basketball, pool, finally do the “official” lodge tour thing.., Get a drink, walk from the spring in the lobby follow the stream that turns into a river like pool, stop off and watch the Geyser. Get another drink, walk the grounds along the cabins trail. Grill out, use the workout room, rent a bike or walk to Fort Wilderness on the trail and maybe go horseback riding or take a carriage ride. Towards evening I would grab a book and sit down in the Carolwood Pacific room and read, strike up a conversation with another guest, possibly a board game. Then I would walk the grounds in the dark, watch the lights flicker and listen to the crickets before I returned to my villa to go to sleep..then wake up and be a flag family and repeat....
Which places are your favorite ?
