Walt Disney World Moderate Resorts – When planning your Disney World vacation, budget resorts can be a good option that won’t break the bank, but offer a few larger rooms and more amenities than a budget resort.
Currently, there are five different moderate resort options, including Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – Riverside, and Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort Cabins. And while there are many things that make these resorts worth checking out, you may run into some major problems that you don’t expect. So instead of wishing you knew these things before you booked your stay, we break them down for you!
Walt Disney World Moderate Resorts
First, let’s talk about the literal elephant in the room – these hotels are huge. Each medium-sized resort consists of separate buildings scattered throughout the resort area. Some are around a large lake, and there’s even one in the woods, so while it may seem like you’re not hanging out with thousands of your new best friends, you totally are.
The 411: Disney World Deluxe Resorts Vs Moderate Vs Value
Value resorts are usually associated with large crowds and therefore have more rooms than Disney’s budget resorts, but that doesn’t mean you can escape the crowds. Moderate resorts still have huge capacity and plenty of rooms – they’re just a bit more spread out (more on that later).
Plus, Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort is actually home to a convention center, so not only are you staying with all the Disney travelers, but it also attracts a lot of business travelers.
Click here to see why some people hate these Disney World hotels! The toilets are a long walk away
When we talk about the size of these resorts and how much space they cover, you may find yourself in a room that is a long walk from the resort’s amenities like a pool, dining options, and the front desk. And if you’ve ever checked into your hotel only to walk all the way to your room and find that your MagicBand won’t work to get you into your room, you’ll know how fun the ride back can be for a moderate way out. In many cases, you can be looking at a 15+ minute walk.
Caribbean Beach Resort
At Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, one of the coolest room options is the pirate-themed rooms. These feature pirate ship beds, a compass blanket, a skull and crossbones shower curtain and more (aka a little pirate’s dream), but what Disney won’t tell you is that they’re actually located in some of the most remote locations. Buildings from old Port Royal (the main building with the big pirate themed pool that those pirates would probably be begging to swim in!). And if you’re wondering how far we’re talking – it could easily take you 15 minutes to walk between the two.
The long walk from your room to the main building with the restrooms is especially arduous when it’s super hot outside, or it’s rainy hurricane season, or worse, in Florida. Either way you’re stuck getting wet (be it sweat or rain) or without food. Remember, it’s just walking, friends. There are no covered walkways or covered corridors here.
Now you can try to avoid this major problem with Disney’s moderate resorts by calling ahead and requesting a room closer to the main building. It doesn’t guarantee you’ll be placed in a closer room, but it’s worth a shot!
Now you might be thinking “we get it, moderate resorts are huge” but there is another problem with the sheer amount of land these resorts cover. Instead of one central bus station, moderate resorts are home to many bus stations throughout the resort area. And while it helps to eliminate some stairs to the main building, you can spend a lot of your precious Disney time walking around the resort instead of enjoying the parks.
Best Disney Deluxe Resorts [list: Top 8 Upscale Hotels At Disney World]
The pick-up and drop-off order of the buses in the circuit may change depending on the time of day or how busy Disney World is, and each resort differs in the number of bus stops. Here’s a quick overview of the stops for each moderate resort:
What can be particularly annoying here with lots of bus stops (we find this especially true on the Caribbean coast) is whether your stop is at the beginning or end of the line. In the early stops? You’ll get on the bus no problem, but you’ll probably wait half an hour on the bus that goes around the resort before you even go to the parks. at the end of the line? You cross your fingers that the bus isn’t full before it finally reaches you and then wait as you drive around the resort to get off at the end of the day! Since it may take you longer than you would expect to get to and from the parks, we suggest adding about 30 minutes to the hour to your travel time, just to make sure you hit all of your Lightning Lanes, restaurant reservations, and plans. While!
Disney World’s new transportation hot spot is the Disney Skyliner. Only one moderate resort has access to this – Caribbean Beach Resort. All other moderates rely on bus transportation to all parks. The Caribbean coast is actually the hub of Skyliner, giving you good access to all the courses in one place. Sounds great, right? Well, a little. Remember the “you’ll be walking a lot” tip we mentioned? True here in a big way.
Get a room near the Skyliner Center, you’re golden. A quick walk and you’ll be close to the parks in no time. But the vast majority of rooms are SCHLEP from Skyliner. In fact, some of the buildings are so far away that you’d be better off going to the nearby Riviera Resort and hopping on the Skyliner there!
How To Pick A Walt Disney World Resort
While long walks and waiting for the bus are hassles most people can handle, one of the pitfalls of select moderate resorts is that some buildings don’t have elevators. For example, at Disney’s Port Orleans – Riverside Resort, the 2-story buildings in the Alligator Bayou area do not have elevators. But the adjacent 3-story “mansions” do.
But that doesn’t necessarily rule out these resorts when deciding where to stay during your Disney World trip, you just want to be sure to contact Disney in advance to request a ground floor room or a building with an elevator, if you need it.
Now, since these resorts are somewhere between great value resorts and luxury resorts, you will find that dining options are somewhat limited. Typically, you can expect moderate resorts to have a table-service restaurant, a quick-service restaurant, and a poolside bar that offers a limited menu.
However, we will start with the anomaly of the group – the cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. The cabins are actually the only part of the resort that is considered “moderate,” and the campgrounds at Disney’s Fort Wilderness are considered in the “value” resort category. So, as you might expect, the food options here are a bit of a mixed bag.
Comparing Our Favorite Walt Disney World Resorts (+tips From A Disney Insider)
Food-wise, there is no food court, but you can have breakfast, lunch and dinner from a takeaway restaurant called P&J’s Southern Takeout. There is also a table service restaurant open for dinner and breakfast Wednesday-Monday called Trail’s End Restaurant. Otherwise, it’s mostly snacks you can do at this resort – the Chuck Wagon is an RV-style snack kiosk, and the Meadow Snack Bar is a great place for poolside drinks and snacks.
At Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, you have three solid dining options. Centertown Market is a quick service food court style location, has a poolside bar (Banana Cabana) and a smaller combo quick service/poolside bar (Spyglass Grill), and the resort’s table service option is Sebastian’s Bistro (which is a gem).
At Disney’s Port Orleans French Quarter Resort, you also have three solid options, including Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory, which is a quick service restaurant, Scat Cat’s Club, which includes a cafe and lounge, and Mardi Grog’s Pool Bar, which is another meeting point. grab drinks So no table service here.
In addition, Disney’s Port Orleans – Riverside Resort has some limited options, including Boatwright’s Dining Hall (open for dinner only), Riverside Mill Food Court, and two bars – River Roost Lounge and Muddy Rivers Pool Bar.
Deluxe Resorts At Walt Disney World: A Comparison Guide
Now, the biggest exception to this bland resort trap is Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. Since this hotel has a convention center and attracts more business guests, there are plenty of dining options – 10 to be exact!
So there you have it – the important things you need to know about staying at Disney World’s temperate resorts. If you’re looking for the best resort for your 2022 Disney World vacation, be sure to check out the 2022 Best Disney World Hotels on our YouTube channel.
Stay tuned to DFB for all the latest tips and updates
Disney moderate resorts, walt disney world resorts orlando florida, walt disney world deluxe resorts, best resorts in walt disney world, disney world moderate resorts reviews, walt disney moderate hotels, walt disney world best moderate resort, disney world moderate resorts ranked, resorts walt disney world, walt disney world moderate hotels, disney world moderate resorts, resorts near walt disney world orlando fl
