Disneyworld Hotels & Resorts
Finding the Best Choice for Your Family's Visit
Family Travel Forum Staff
Whether traveling with your small family or planning a giant reunion, here's Family Travel Forum's complete guide to Walt Disney World hotels and resorts.
If touring Walt Disney World theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Disney's Hollywood Studios) is your family's goal, take some time to select the right Orlando hotel. Location is important: your on-site "official" Walt Disney World (also known as Disneyworld or WDW) hotel might be close to the Magic Kingdom so preschoolers can take a mid-day nap, within Animal Kingdom for that "on safari" feel, or in walking distance of Epcot so teens can find fun after dark.
Budget is important, too, and Disneyworld has thousands of hotel rooms in three basic price ranges: Deluxe, Moderately Priced and Value Hotels and Camping. Deluxe hotels range in price from $215-$510/night, Moderately priced hotels range from $145-$210/night, and Value Hotels range from $82-$131/night. These rates are per double room, depending on season and view, plus 12.5% in local taxes. The peak season winter holiday rates are 10%-15% higher.
At all properties, children 17-years-old and younger may stay free of charge in an adult's room. After two adults per room, there is a charge of $25 per person at deluxe hotels, $15 per person at moderate hotels, and $10 per person at value hotels; a rollaway bed costs $15/night and cribs are free of charge. Deluxe hotel rooms have a maximum occupancy of five people, and all others are typically four. The deluxe properties have one and two-bedroom suites in addition to hotel rooms that connect, and a few of these hotels plus two others, the Old Key West Resort and Saratoga Springs Resort, have Disney Vacation Club interval ownership (timeshare) apartment units. We'll point out the exceptions to this rule in each review.
Benefits of Staying at a Disneyworld Property
Disney's expertise at theming extends to its hotels, and that makes them fun to visit even if you're not an overnight guest. Each hotel or resort is like its own mini-theme park tour, due to the attention to detail in the decor; well landscaped grounds and pool areas; original artwork; displays of authentic crafts or historic objects; period or native costumes for staff or "cast members;" and availability of ethnic food at many hotel restaurants. Hotels in the deluxe category are especially worth a visit.
Staying at a WDW resort grants you certain privileges which really come in handy if you're visiting during the high season. These include extended admission hours -- typically one hour earlier than the public, and up to three hours' later -- to selected rides and attractions within each park on alternating days; VIP privileges at Disney golf courses; advance dinner show and character breakfast reservations; a WDW I.D. card for charging all meals and purchases; seasonal bonus shows or activities at the resorts; or other perks.
There is also a lot to do at each hotel. Don't forget that for most families on a week-long vacation, spending all day each day in the parks is too exhausting. WDW has learned from experience that its guests enjoy and need at least one day back at the resort to relax, renew, and recharge for the continuing fun.
Disney's Magical Express, complimentary transportation by private bus from Orlando International Airport, is another great new perk. Using the kit that is sent prior to departure, families can tag their luggage so that WDW is responsible for retrieving it from baggage claim and delivering it to your on-site hotel. That makes the transition from airplane to resort easy with kids, and enables you to go straight to the parks on your arrival day. When you're ready to return home, depending on the airline you are flying, a family member can check in the whole clan, pick up boarding passes, and deposit suitcases right at the hotel concierge, who will get them to the right plane on time. By mid-2007, Disney says this service will be available for 90% of the flights to or from Orlando.
The complimentary transportation within the parks and to/from the resorts, by monorail, bus or ferry, means on-site hotel guests can save money on a rental car. This public transportation is available to all park guests regardless of their hotel.
If your family will visit several Orlando family attractions, or would prefer to stay outside WDW for budget or other reasons, there are hundreds of convenient options. Family Travel Forum takes a look at hotels outside the Disney parks at the end of this article, and reviews several of them in detail in other hotel stories.
Magic & Dreams
Disney offers a program called "Magical Gatherings" to help facilitate large groups, such as family reunions, at Disney World. This is in response to an increased interest in such sharing vacations, among eight or more family members or friends who enjoy vacationing with each other. Walt Disney World is an especially popular venue for Americans, confirmed by its rank as No. 4 on the American Society of Travel Agents' 206 survey of "Top 10 Family Reunion Destinations."
Magical Gatherings agents assist with itinerary planning for these parties of eight or more, enabling an extended family to focus more time and energy on enjoying the Disneyworld adventure together. When rooms are booked as a group, the hotels will give priority to requests for connecting rooms, as these are only guranteed to those with medical needs. Other features include semi-private park encounters, specially arranged character meals, and a fireworks voyage on Bay Lake near the Magic Kingdom. Ask your travel agent for more details.
If your Dream Hotel is Cinderella's Castle in Magic Kingdom, then your family could be the lucky ones to win a stay during Disney's worldwide "Year of a Million Dreams" promotion, through December of 2007. In order to make dreams come true for every park visitor, Dream Squads of Disney employees have been empowered to grant special wishes to guests at the Orlando and California parks. To fulfill what seemed to be a common fantasy, the creative crew of Disney Imagineers took an empty space inside the 4th floor of the castle that had been intended as a personal apartment for Walt Disney and his family, and converted it into a magical suite with two queen beds and a pullout sofa in the parlor, sleeping up to six. Cost for the night: priceless.
Select the Right Hotel & Book It Early
As we've said, where to stay within Walt Disney World will depend on your budget and individual family's taste, and the Disney reservations agents are expert at helping guests make a decision. The accommodations noted in every price range have swimming pools (with more or less elaborate landscaping, play areas and waterslides), food courts or theme restaurants with children's menus, an arcade, ATM machine, playground and other child-friendly amenities. Standard in-room features include a coffeemaker, ironing board and iron, telephone, cable TV, hair dryer, broadband Internet access ($9.95/day) and, in deluxe resorts, a minifridge (rentals are $10/day at other hotels) and safe.
Every WDW hotel facility we toured was spotless and well maintained, the staff was friendly and helpful, and each had ample parking, a guest laundromat, a store for sundries and snacks, room service (if only pizza delivery at the value hotels), a nearby playground and free resort transportation. Every hotel has handicap accessible rooms and almost all have elevators. All have a main pool staffed by lifeguards and some have smaller, quiet pools without Disney staff on duty. Life jackets are available on loan, and swim diapers are required for ages 3 and under. The main differences between the price categories are the public spaces (variety of pools, restaurants, shops and facilities), size of guest room, quality of furnishings and decor, and proximity to the theme parks.
As soon as you make some choices, work with a travel agent to secure reservations; many resorts sell out six to eight months in advance. However, there will always be room at the inn when you realize that more than 25,000 rooms are now available at Disney World. You can call Disney at 
407/934-7639 or visit www.disneyworld.com to get more information and brochures.
Here's an extensive look at Disneyworld hotels and resorts for all budgets. Our reviews are divided by price category, according to the links below.
