Our last trip to Disney World we stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. The AKL is to me of the coolest resorts at Walt Disney World. When we booked our trip we picked the standard room. While not the largest room or the best view we were still excited to be at the Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Once in the room and walking out on the balcony we had a wonderful view of the parking lot. This is the part where there would be a “Wah Wah” sound effect. The way the AKL is set up all the animals are on the inside of the resort. Giraffes, Zebra, etc are only visible with the preferred rooms. What is the point at staying at a Deluxe Resort if you are not going to take advantage of one of the main amenities – The View!
So is the increase in rate worth the added cost?
I would say it depends on the resorts.
For example when we went in September of last year we stayed at the Boardwalk Inn & Villas. Again we did the standard room rate and not the preferred upgrade. We had a great view of the water slide but wished we would have paid the upgrade and had a view of the Boardwalk. To me it wasn’t a huge deal, nowhere near as bad as the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Would have been nice to see Illuminations: Reflections of Earth though.
Talking with Chris one of our local Pixie Vacations she had this to say about upgrading:
Should you upgrade your room? I would say no. For one it’s a lot more money for very little benefit. Unless you have a medical condition that makes it easier for you to be closer to the bus stop, skip it. The only preferred upgrade I believe in paying more for are the rooms at Deluxe Resorts that provide you with better views (i.e., theme park, water). Otherwise, stick with the standard room rate. And for goodness sakes, don’t pay for a “water” view at a value resort!
The only real benefit of a preferred room in the value and moderate resorts is being closer to the amenities: Pool, Bus Stops, Laundry, etc. But remember, being closer to the pool also means more noise. Unless you need to be closer to these things, don’t worry about it. Save your money.
So like Chris I believe it depends on the Resort. When we book our yearly trip next year we are shooting for the Beach Club Resort & Villas. Will I pay to upgrade the room? You better believe it.
If we were staying at the Pop Century Resort? Probably not.
I am not a travel agent but highly recommend using an Earmarked Disney Travel Agency like Pixie Vacations. Contact Chris at chris@pixievacations.com to book your Disney World vacation today. Be sure to talk to her about room upgrades and be sure to tell her Chip sent ya!
So what do you think? Do you pay for the preferred room upgrade? Let us know in the comment box below.
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For the last 3 years, we’ve stayed at All Star resorts; the first year we were in the baseball building at Sports…after long days of walking around the parks, that was a long walk back to our room and another long walk to get our evening coffee/cocoa in the cafeteria. The 2nd year (at Music) we were upgraded to a preferred room at no charge and we will never go back. It was so nice to be close to everything; made it easier in the mornings to have breakfast & then go back to our room to pack up for the parks. We go in September when crowds are lower, so we haven’t have any probs with pool noise. This year, we’re staying at POFQ in a standard room; we have requested bldg 4 next to the main building, but one of the main reasons we booked here was b/c of it’s small, accessible size. I don’t have any need to overlook the river, so no upgrade for us this year.
Last trip we stayed at Pop Century and loved it. We were within easy walking distance to the buses, the food court and most of the pools (the kids had to try every pool!) For us a great view and expensive room would have been noticed in passing as we staggered back to the beds after a full day at the parks!
Having 2 children that work for Disney (I know AWESOME!!) we go when they have cast member discounts. Our favorite is the Caribean Beach Resort. All the time we stayed there we did not upgrade and were in the buildings across the water from the food court. I have to say I love it!! It is so quiet over there, no parking problems. So we have to drive to the food court and pool, so what, it is well worth it for the quietness.
We are DVC members so it depends on where we are staying and the points difference. If we can do preferred we do, and at Bay Lake Tower we will go for the Magic Kingdom view for sure! The DVC has been the best thing we did and we have got more than our money’s worth from it in our opinion.
If I was paying out of pocket I would stay at moderate resorts more and may or may not get preferred views, probably not.