touring hotels

Our favourite restaurants are in the resorts..Haven't visited any of the value resorts but done all moderates and most of the deluxe ones apart from GF tho next year we hope to snag a ADR at Narcoossees..

I don't resort hop. But if I have an ADR at a resort restaurant, I'll also take some time to look around, the end result being essentially the same thing - I've visited all of the deluxe resorts.

I STILL need to check out Wilderness Lodge. I've wanted to since the first time I saw it and it's the only one we haven't been to...

Where can I fit it in a couple weeks? Back to the planning sheet!

We love resort hopping and as others have said, it's especially fun at Christmas. I think it's worth including the values as well because their larger-than-life theming is great fun for all!! In general, I like the shops better at the values and moderates, too. Even though we don't buy all that much, we love to have a look through the gift shops. Port Orleans has a great food court for a quick service meal and Fort Wilderness has a campfire, carriage & wagon rides, and horses. It's definitely worth taking some time to explore a resort or two each time you visit.

While these days pool hopping is a no-no, resort hopping is awesome and we always include it in our Disney activities.

The easiest "groups" of hotels to visit in a single crawl are the monorail resorts (Poly, Contemporary, Grand Floridian) and the Epcot Resorts (Yacht Club, Beach Club, Swan/Dolphin, and Boardwalk). I've frequently done the monorail crawl in the evening, eating and drinking my way around the Seven Seas Lagoon and watching the fireworks at the end. However you can do the sam at the Epcot resorts.

Two of my very favorites are just a bit off the beaten path, the Wilderness Lodge, and Animal Kingdom Lodge are both pretty spectacular in their own right. When visiting either of those I usually make sure that I have an ADR to eat while I'm there. Wilderness Lodge is home to one of my favorite breakfasts (Whispering Canyon) and Animal Kingdom Lodge has three amazing table service restaurants (BOMA, Jiko, and Sanaa) Sanaa is best for lunch because the view of the savanna is rockin'.

Among deluxe resorts, IMO Animal Kingdom Lodge, the Polynesian, and Wilderness Lodge are the most interesting. The Contemporary is cool, but once you've ridden through on the monorail you've seen most of what it has to offer. The others are nice, but not places I would go out of my way to visit, so check out the Grand Floridian since it's right there on the monorail loop. Take a quick look at Saratoga Springs from across the pond at Downtown Disney and you've pretty much seen it. Take the boat between Epcot and DHS and if any of the resorts along the way appeal to you, get off the boat and take a look.

Both Port Orleans resorts are worth seeing, but French Quarter is better IMO. Those are the only two moderates I've visited.

As for the values, I love staying at them but wouldn't go out of my way just to visit.

For those of you who remember me, all Jan and I ever did was resort hopping. Out of 67 stays at the World, for me, we only went to the theme parks 2 times. Once on opening weekend in 1971 and again in 1990.
Joe

That's an amazing testament to how the resorts are destinations in themselves.

That's an amazing testament to how the resorts are destinations in themselves.