Art of Animation vs. Wyndham Bonnet Creek?

[sste]

We need to rent a car no matter what as DH has a conference. We are only somewhat concerned about price since part of it is a paid work trip - - also I received a pin code that includes AofA, I think 25% off or somesuch.

I would really like to have a separate room for the kids so that is how I narrowed it down to these two.

We always avoid the park with the morning extra magic hours but sometimes we use the evening.

I suspect DH and I would prefer Bonnet Creek but our kids are going through an intense lion king phase and apparently AofA has lion king suites and very cute styling.

Anyway, any views or opinions?

[MSWR0319]

We stayed at Bonnet Creek when DS was 2.5. He remembers every waking moment of the 6 days and loved Bonnet Creek. They have apirate shp pool, lazy river, play ground, and more. It was a nice Disney break and the amenities were very kid friendly.

[KDsMommy]

We stayed at Bonnet Creek this past April and it was wonderful. It is the only place I will stay at WDW now.

[WatchingThemGrow]

I'd go to the AoA. Friends stayed there last week (Little Mermaid room?) and enjoyed it. Got no details yet, but how much fun would it be to have a themed room that your DS is totally into. MY DS1 was going to sleep on the murphy bed at POR in August, but he got really freaked out by the "scary" alligator drawing that shows when you pull the bed down. Still makes me giggle.

[hellokitty]

I'd go to the AoA. Friends stayed there last week (Little Mermaid room?) and enjoyed it. Got no details yet, but how much fun would it be to have a themed room that your DS is totally into. MY DS1 was going to sleep on the murphy bed at POR in August, but he got really freaked out by the "scary" alligator drawing that shows when you pull the bed down. Still makes me giggle.

Oh no! We are staying at POR AB in a month and I figured the kids would fight over who gets to sleep in the alligator bed. I hope none of them freak out.

OP, I think you should just do AoA if your kids are into LK theming. 25% off is pretty good, seeing how it's the newest resort at WDW.

[lil_acorn]

does bonnet creek have air port transportation and theme part transportation or would you need to rent a car?

[sste]

Thanks everyone!

We are def. going to have to rent one car to get DH to his conference which is elsewhere in Orlando. I am sort of leaning toward AoA because the transportation to the theme park via bus is much better and I will be alone with the kids in Disney half of the days. My understanding is that Bonnet Creek has transport but it is not that fast/frequent and we are unfortunately still in the mid day nap stage.

Unfortunately my code is only 15% off, I found out!! We want to book a one-bedroom suite and AofA is surprisingly pricey - - with the code it is about the same as a deluxe room with a 30% off pin. However, I really, really want a separate room for kids - - otherwise DH and I need to go to bed at 8:30pm every night!

[Seitvonzu]

do you think your kids will be pretty worn out? my child has an AMAZING energy level (esp when doing fun activities/outings) and she was ZONKED at disney world by the end of the day. at home we NEVER have to wake her up , but we had to at disney every morning. we stayed at animal kingdom (such an awesome resort, food was great too--zebras out the window? yes please!), and beds were side by side..it was never a problem really. (at home or even on a normal vacation this is NOT the case-- we haven't been able to sleep in the same room since DD was 4 months old ;)) so ... the extra room might not be 100% as important as it usually would be.

good luck deciding! it's fun!

[hellokitty]

do you think your kids will be pretty worn out? my child has an AMAZING energy level (esp when doing fun activities/outings) and she was ZONKED at disney world by the end of the day. at home we NEVER have to wake her up , but we had to at disney every morning. we stayed at animal kingdom (such an awesome resort, food was great too--zebras out the window? yes please!), and beds were side by side..it was never a problem really. (at home or even on a normal vacation this is NOT the case-- we haven't been able to sleep in the same room since DD was 4 months old ;)) so ... the extra room might not be 100% as important as it usually would be.

good luck deciding! it's fun!

:yeahthat: We normally only get suite style hotels when we travel. However, last time our family of 5 (ds3 was under 3 yrs old, so that is why we could stay there as a fam of five) stayed at POFQ the kids were pretty tuckered out and so were DH and I. We usually would only stay up for about an hr before retiring to bed and tv kind of sucks at disney, so we usually just did internet. I don't think that the extra room is super crucial. In your case where your DH is taking the car, I would DEFINITELY stay onsite. The WBC's shuttles are not as often as disney's and with little ones by yourself, I would want the convenience of the more reliable shuttle, kwim?

[jjordan]

I agree that if you're going to have kids by yourself (with no car), then I'd stay at Disney so that you have access to their transportation.

[TwinFoxes]

I agree that if you're going to have kids by yourself (with no car), then I'd stay at Disney so that you have access to their transportation.

:yeahthat: I just got back from BC, and it was terrific, but we had a car. I wish I had kept the BC bus schedule. I do remember looking at it and was surprised they ran as frequently as they did, and there were a few mid-day buses, but nothing compared to on-property resorts. If you don't need to rely on buses, I can highly recommend BC. It is very close to the parks, it's maybe 5-7 minutes to DHS/EPCOT.

[staceyeileen]

Bonnett creek without a question, IMO.

[egoldber]

If your DH is using the rental car for his conference then I would absolutely stay on WDW property. You can use the buses, package delivery, early entry (your kids are early risers right?), etc.

[sste]

Yes, I think you are right the disney transportation is going to be key for us on this trip! We tend to use the evening magic hours more becaue the early magic hours park often seems the most crowded - - but it is nice to have an option.

It is killing me to pay this much for a value/moderate but I suppose DH's employer is picking up a few nights and we really want to try the suite. Unfortunately, our kids will not sleep in our hotel room unless it is pitch dark, no noise or movement - - so DH and I are usually imprisoned from 8pm on motionless in the dark room.

Next time when it is entirely on our dime and we don't have the conference complication, I am going to try Bonnet creek. :)

[kaharris83]

For us the money saved by staying at Bonnet Creek is going towards parking at Disney. Last time we went it was $14/day, it's probably gone up, and rental cars in Orlando are super cheap. If you rent two cars and just park in the Disney lots while at the parks would that save you any money? Or be easier in terms of having different rooms?