How to please all the family

Guest · 24 Apr 18, 02:27 PM

Hi,

We're planning on going to Disney for 14 nights in October next year. There are 2 families with children and 2 adults going.

I want to stay at AKL (we were due to stay there on honeymoon but got moved to Wilderness Lodge, so it's on my to-do list! ) and take advantage of the FREE dining plan, but the other family with children don't want to share a bedroom with their children - so are looking at suites at the All Star Resorts...

This is a once in a lifetime holiday for our little family, and AKL is only an extra �500! It looks SO much nicer!

My question is, how far away are they from each other? Could we stay at AKL and they stay at ASR? Free Disney transportation would make life easier wouldn't it?

Thanks

Guest · 24 Apr 18, 02:36 PM

I think you should stay where you want to stay. The resorts are not particularly close, but it will be easy to meet up each day in the parks or for meals and to be honest maybe you would like the separation (although I say that as somebody who cannot imagine going on holiday with another family

).

Note Disney transport does not go from resort to resort, it goes between parks and between parks and resorts.

chmurf · 24 Apr 18, 02:43 PM

To go between the 2 resorts you'd need to transfer via a park (think 60 minutes roughly)
without a car or paying for Uber, that's a big no-no

maybe you could look into renting DVC points and have them stay at Kidani (AKL Villas) in a 1 bedroom (kids in the living room sofa bed, parents in the room)
this way you could be at AKL right next door (5 minutes walk) and get your free dining

The All Stars ... no thank you (people don't flame me, it's just that given a choice between AKL and All Stars ... well ... no competition here.)

Dizzny Momma · 24 Apr 18, 02:44 PM

What's the old saying "you can't please all of the people all of the time but some of them some of the time". It's your holiday as much as the other families so book whichever makes you happy and meet up in the parks or at each others resort.
Margaret

Mel49 · 24 Apr 18, 02:47 PM

Are you hiring cars or relying on onsite transport? If no car then will be 2 bus journeys to and from resorts but if you meet at the parks each day will only be the one journey. It also depends on whether you are intending to be with the others every day all day or doing your own thing and meeting up from time to time. Also if you are on the free dining plan and they're not it could add more problems around where to eat etc.

I think the only way it would really work is if you are really having separate holidays and meeting up some of the times in the parks. If you want to all do the same rides, meals and experiences together all the time it would not work easily.

Personally, I would not be giving up my dream of AKL unless it was always the intention to stay in same place and be together 24/7. However what about a compromise where stay onsite for 5 days to get DDP and then offsite in a villa for the rest. That is what we are hopefully going to do next year as no way my DH will share with kids ( 12 & 15) for 2 weeks so I can understand the other families predicament. Good luck with your decision

Guest · 24 Apr 18, 03:26 PM

I was thinking along these lines too.

If you're going to be at Disney most of the day every day - you'd be together most of the time anyway, in which case going back to different resorts is perhaps less of an issue.

If you intend to do things together as a larger group away from Disney, a larger villa, or two smaller ones would work well.

Originally Posted by Mel49

Are you hiring cars or relying on onsite transport? If no car then will be 2 bus journeys to and from resorts but if you meet at the parks each day will only be the one journey. It also depends on whether you are intending to be with the others every day all day or doing your own thing and meeting up from time to time. Also if you are on the free dining plan and they're not it could add more problems around where to eat etc.

I think the only way it would really work is if you are really having separate holidays and meeting up some of the times in the parks. If you want to all do the same rides, meals and experiences together all the time it would not work easily.

Personally, I would not be giving up my dream of AKL unless it was always the intention to stay in same place and be together 24/7. However what about a compromise where stay onsite for 5 days to get DDP and then offsite in a villa for the rest. That is what we are hopefully going to do next year as no way my DH will share with kids ( 12 & 15) for 2 weeks so I can understand the other families predicament. Good luck with your decision

DonnaD · 24 Apr 18, 05:55 PM

By car the resorts are actually very close. However as already mentioned there are no buses between them and you would have to change at Animal Kingdom and spend much longer waiting for buses than actually on them.

Are the other family planning on paying for full DDP? If so there aren't any TS restaurants at the All Star resorts and they might be better off somewhere else with 1 bed room suites and DDP anyway.

**BevS97** · 24 Apr 18, 06:00 PM

Originally Posted by chmurf

maybe you could look into renting DVC points and have them stay at Kidani (AKL Villas) in a 1 bedroom (kids in the living room sofa bed, parents in the room)
this way you could be at AKL right next door (5 minutes walk) and get your free dining

The All Stars ... no thank you (people don't flame me, it's just that given a choice between AKL and All Stars ... well ... no competition here.)

They could even stay in Jambo DVC 1 bed and you�d be in the same building

24 Apr 18, 02:27 PM	#1
	24 Apr 18, 02:27 PM Guest Guest
Guest Guest	How to please all the family Hi, We're planning on going to Disney for 14 nights in October next year. There are 2 families with children and 2 adults going. I want to stay at AKL (we were due to stay there on honeymoon but got moved to Wilderness Lodge, so it's on my to-do list! ) and take advantage of the FREE dining plan, but the other family with children don't want to share a bedroom with their children - so are looking at suites at the All Star Resorts... This is a once in a lifetime holiday for our little family, and AKL is only an extra �500! It looks SO much nicer! My question is, how far away are they from each other? Could we stay at AKL and they stay at ASR? Free Disney transportation would make life easier wouldn't it? Thanks

24 Apr 18, 02:36 PM	#2
	24 Apr 18, 02:36 PM Guest Guest
Guest Guest	I think you should stay where you want to stay. The resorts are not particularly close, but it will be easy to meet up each day in the parks or for meals and to be honest maybe you would like the separation (although I say that as somebody who cannot imagine going on holiday with another family ). Note Disney transport does not go from resort to resort, it goes between parks and between parks and resorts.

24 Apr 18, 02:43 PM	#3
	24 Apr 18, 02:43 PM chmurf Imagineer
chmurf Imagineer Join Date: Dec 12	To go between the 2 resorts you'd need to transfer via a park (think 60 minutes roughly) without a car or paying for Uber, that's a big no-no maybe you could look into renting DVC points and have them stay at Kidani (AKL Villas) in a 1 bedroom (kids in the living room sofa bed, parents in the room) this way you could be at AKL right next door (5 minutes walk) and get your free dining The All Stars ... no thank you (people don't flame me, it's just that given a choice between AKL and All Stars ... well ... no competition here.)