How to Choose a Disney World Resort

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List of5 Things to Consider When Choosing a Disney Resort. Your Budget, Your Plans, Location, Transportation, Pools/Theming — Save this List for Your Next Disney Planning Session

YAY, you are going to Disney, let the planning begin! One of the first things you need to choose is a resort or hotel to make your home base. Disney offers an amazing array of resorts to stay in “on property,” meaning you are within Walt Disney World.

Disney World Resorts offer unique perks such as entering the parks 30 minutes earlier than non-resort guests, free transportation to and from the parks, amazing theming, delicious restaurants, and incredible pools.

Choosing between all of the Disney World Resort options can be overwhelming! My tips on How to Choose a Disney World Resort take into account your budget, plans, location, transportation, and pools/theming.

Plan Your Disney World Trip Budget

I know, I know not the most exciting or fun part of booking a Disney trip. But the best way to start narrowing down which resort is right for you is to figure out which one you can afford! If a resort is out of your price range, it doesn’t matter which parks it’s close to or what the pools are like!

Disney divides its resorts by pricing and location. From most expensive to least expensive these are Deluxe Villas, Deluxe Resort Hotels, Moderate Resort Hotels, Value Resort Hotels, and Campgrounds.

Looking to save a little money on your Disney Trip? Check out my list of What to Buy for a Disney Trip by clicking here.

Consider Your Disney World Plan/Must-Dos

What are your priorities for this trip? Parks every day? Lots of pool time at the resort? If you plan to be at the parks all day every day from open until close, it may not make sense to splurge on a resort with a bunch of amenities that you won’t be using.

But if you plan to head to your resort in the afternoon for pool/rest time and return to the parks in the evening, you may want a resort that is convenient to the parks. This will minimize the time you spend waiting for and riding buses back and forth.

Fireworks

Ooh, the fireworks! The best-known fireworks shows are at Magic Kingdom and Epcot. Check the Disney app or website for schedules. If you have little ones and don’t plan to be at the parks until the start (usually around 9 pm), you can see the fireworks from certain hotels.

Speaking of little ones, be sure to check out my post about Tips and Tricks for Disney World with Toddlers. Click here to head there now!

The Magic Kingdom fireworks can be viewed from the Polynesian, Grand Floridian, and Contemporary Resorts. We are staying at the Polynesian for our next trip and I am super excited to see the fireworks from the beach there!

Epcot also has a fireworks show, which can be viewed near the Epcot area hotels including the bridge between the Boardwalk and Beach Club hotels as well as the bridge between the Boardwalk Hotel and Swan & Dolphin.

Hollywood Studios has a bit smaller fireworks display. It can also be viewed from select locations at the Beach Club and Swan & Dolphin Resorts.

Disney World Resort Locations

Disney World Resorts are broken into 3 main areas based on location. There are the Magic Kingdom Resorts, Epcot Resorts, and Wide World of Sports resorts.

Magic Kingdom Resorts

Contemporary (including Bay Lake Tower)
Grand Floridian Resort
Polynesian Village Resort
Wilderness Lodge (including Boulder Ridge Villas, Copper Creek Villas, and Cabins)
Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground

Epcot Resorts

Beach and Yacht Club Resorts
Swan & Dolphin Resorts
BoardWalk Inn and Villas
Riviera Resort
Caribbean Beach Resort

Animal Kingdom Resort Area

Animal Kingdom Lodge
Coronado Springs Resort
All-Star Resorts (Music, Movies, and Sports)

Hollywood Studios Resort Area aka ESPN Wide World of Sports Area

Art of Animation Resort
Pop Century Resort

Disney Spring Resort Area

Old Key West Resort
Saratoga Springs Resort
Port Orleans Resort (French Quarter and Riverside)

Kids playing in splash pad at Disney's Art of Animation Resort with text overlay How to Choose a Disney Resort — Need a kid-friendly splash pad for little ones? Art of Animation may work for you!

Consider your Disney Transportation Options

Each resort includes transportation to and from each park. But they are not all the same in terms of ease and speed of transportation. The main transportation methods are monorail, boat/water taxi, bus, walking, and the Skyliner.

I honestly spend a lot of time Googling “how to get from A to B” to plan my transportation as there are so many options but only certain transportation modes go to certain parks and resorts. Be sure to add your transportation plans to your daily itinerary to avoid confusion!

Walking

I personally think walking is the easiest way to get around Disney, and it avoids folding your stroller up for buses, boats, etc. However few resorts offer the option of walking to the parks. The following are the few options for walking to the parks from resorts

Contemporary and Bay Lake tower is walkable to Magic Kingdom
BoardWalk Inn and Villas is walkable to Epcot and Hollywood Studios
Yacht Club Beach Club Resorts and Villas are also walkable to Epcot and Hollywood Studios
Swan & Dolphin is walkable to Epcot and Hollywood Studios

A note about walking, you will be walking MILES every day at Disney. If you are debating renting a stroller, do it. Carrying kids is not fun for anyone and strollers give them the opportunity to relax while also seeing the sights around them.

I highly recommend Kingdom Strollers. We have used them for two Disney trips and had perfect service, prompt drop off and pick up, and impeccably clean strollers. My favorite is the City Mini GT!!

Monorail

The monorail makes 5 stops, including 3 resorts:

Grand Floridian
Polynesian Village
Contemporary Resort
Magic Kingdom
Transportation and Ticket Center.

From the Transportation and Ticket Center, you can catch an Express Monorail to Magic Kingdom or Epcot.

Bus

Most resorts offer buses if not on the monorail. Thankfully if you check “Get Directions” in the My Disney Experience App (which you NEED for a Disney trip these days), you can get insight as to schedules, stops, etc to help plan your day.

Boat

There is a water taxi service to Magic Kingdom, Disney Springs, and Epcot/Hollywood Studios from select Disney Resorts. There is also a ferry connecting the Magic Kingdom to the Transportation and Ticket Center.

Remember that while many hotels have a water taxi or boat service, not all of them go everywhere. For example, some resorts offer boat services, but only to Disney Springs, not any of the parks.

Skyliner

The Skyliner is a newer gondola system connecting some of the resorts to a station located at the International Gateway at Epcot. The following resorts have Skyliner Stations:

Art of Animation Resort
Caribbean Beach Resort
Riviera Resort
Pop Century Resort

The International Gateway station is walkable to the Beach Club, Yacht Club, and BoardWalk Inn resorts.

Check out the Disney World Resort Pools/Theming

Each and every one of the Disney World Resorts has incredible theming, it is Disney after all! But if there is a Disney or Pixar movie that is your favorite, do a quick search. There is likely a resort with matching theming to make your family’s experience extra special.

Little Mermaid, Cars, Lion King, or Finding Nemo fans? Click here to check out my post about the Art of Animation Resort. Spoiler alert, we LOVE it there!