Help Me Pick - Coronado Springs, Contemporary, Four Seasons, or other?

[hdnyc]

Hi - we are planning a trip for December 2022 (week before Christmas) and I’m having a difficult time deciding on a hotel. Family of 6, oldest kid is 8 and youngest is 3. Pool isn’t a huge priority since we are going in September. We visit all of the parks, but probably spend a little more time at Magic Kingdom than the others. We are planning to do 3 days at Disney parks, 1 day at Universal, and one day at Sea World. Which room type would you choose? Also want to have a nice Christmas vibe at the hotel.

Coronado Springs Gran Desntino Tower 2br presidential suite (club level) - looks beautiful, but a moderate resort and doesn’t have extended evening hours. Not sure about the transportation. Love having the extra living room space.

Contemporary Resort - 2 Garden-view rooms. Not club level, has extended evening hours, can walk to Magic Kingdom.

Epcot/Hollywood Studios area Deluxe Hotel - 2 entry level rooms - Not club level, has extended evening hours, can walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios

Four Seasons - 2 entry level rooms - guessing this would be the nicest overall hotel. Still don’t quite understand the transportation here and if we would have to go through the TTC to get to Magic Kingdom? Probably wouldn’t use the pool too much unless it ends up being really hot.

 

[RanDIZ]

Since 2 of the 3 Disney days would be spent at EP and HS, that area might be best suited for the trip. My favorite for a Christmas time resort is Copper Creek and still close proximity MK. The lodge also has 2 pools and great food choices.

 

[Marionnette]

Hi - we are planning a trip for December 2022 (week before Christmas) and I’m having a difficult time deciding on a hotel. Family of 6, oldest kid is 8 and youngest is 3. Pool isn’t a huge priority since we are going in September. We visit all of the parks, but probably spend a little more time at Magic Kingdom than the others. We are planning to do 3 days at Disney parks, 1 day at Universal, and one day at Sea World. Which room type would you choose? Also want to have a nice Christmas vibe at the hotel.

Coronado Springs Gran Desntino Tower 2br presidential suite (club level) - looks beautiful, but a moderate resort and doesn’t have extended evening hours. Not sure about the transportation. Love having the extra living room space.

Contemporary Resort - 2 Garden-view rooms. Not club level, has extended evening hours, can walk to Magic Kingdom.

Epcot/Hollywood Studios area Deluxe Hotel - 2 entry level rooms - Not club level, has extended evening hours, can walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios

Four Seasons - 2 entry level rooms - guessing this would be the nicest overall hotel. Still don’t quite understand the transportation here and if we would have to go through the TTC to get to Magic Kingdom? Probably wouldn’t use the pool too much unless it ends up being really hot.

If these are the only options available, I would choose the suite at GDT. It gives you the club level and, more importantly, everyone is in the same room. With such young children, the EEH aren't going to be worth it (Epcot, especially).

As far as a Christmas-y vibe is concerned, I've always thought that CR was the least impressive. The Epcot resorts are better but nothing beats WL (GF comes close). GDT does a decent job. It's just not on the scale of WL and GF.

Transportation is easiest at the Epcot resorts (boat, Skyliner or walk to 2 parks). CR would be second with monorail to Epcot or walk to MK. GDT would be buses to every location.

I really don't know anything about the Four Seasons in Orlando. Their other hotels are extremely nice and their customer service has been top notch at other locations where we have stayed. I would expect the same in Orlando. But if I were staying offsite with young kids, I would want a my own car for getting around.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Hi - we are planning a trip for December 2022 (week before Christmas) and I’m having a difficult time deciding on a hotel. Family of 6, oldest kid is 8 and youngest is 3. Pool isn’t a huge priority since we are going in September. We visit all of the parks, but probably spend a little more time at Magic Kingdom than the others. We are planning to do 3 days at Disney parks, 1 day at Universal, and one day at Sea World. Which room type would you choose? Also want to have a nice Christmas vibe at the hotel.

Coronado Springs Gran Desntino Tower 2br presidential suite (club level) - looks beautiful, but a moderate resort and doesn’t have extended evening hours. Not sure about the transportation. Love having the extra living room space.

Contemporary Resort - 2 Garden-view rooms. Not club level, has extended evening hours, can walk to Magic Kingdom.

Epcot/Hollywood Studios area Deluxe Hotel - 2 entry level rooms - Not club level, has extended evening hours, can walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios

Four Seasons - 2 entry level rooms - guessing this would be the nicest overall hotel. Still don’t quite understand the transportation here and if we would have to go through the TTC to get to Magic Kingdom? Probably wouldn’t use the pool too much unless it ends up being really hot.

Interesting question/choices. I’ve been in most of the above room types with my kids (currently 12/8 but we’ve been traveling to WDW since youngest was 9 months) so hopefully my perspective is helpful. Or ignore everything I say!

I’ll caveat that my bias is towards CL - with my crew/how we travel, CL adds such a nice bit of convenience that has typically been well worth it in our WDW travels. That’s not a universal statement that will apply to everyone, but it works well for us.

GDT Presidential Suite - Amazing (huge) room. Everyone guaranteed in one room is a plus. Room will be on the 15th floor so same as the CL lounge. GDT CL would be in my personal Top 3 of CLs as the lounge is beautiful and I think they do a really nice job there - helpful CMs, good food choices, etc. Food does tend to slant along the Spanish theme of the restaurants there, in a Disney kind of way. CSR gets knocks for being a bus-only resort which is true… but it’s manageable, IMHO. CSR is actually pretty centrally located within WDW so isn’t all that far from anything. Relative to other WDW suite costs, the Presidential Suite here is a really good value, IMHO.

CR 2 Garden View Rooms - Personally I would look into some of the suite options here if available vs 2 rooms, if an option for you. I can never remember how it works with two rooms and only two adults so hopefully those with experience there can chime in, make sure you understand the pros/cons of what is/isn’t guaranteed, etc. Certainly makes MK convenient from here. Are you doing any of the MK Christmas parties while there? CR is high on my list during party season and the cooler months where swimming isn’t a priority since the CR pools are just so-so.

Epcot Resorts - Never a bad choice, just depends on what you’re going for. Same comment about knowing what’s guaranteed or not with 2 rooms. We’re a little partial to YC over the others.

Four Seasons - Yes, MK transportation goes to the TTC, arguably my one dislike about FS. The buses run on a set schedule which is both good and bad… good in that you can plan, bad in that if you miss it you have to wait for the next scheduled time. Otherwise, amazing resort, beautiful in every respect, Four Seasons-level service, one of the best pool complexes anywhere in Orlando. If you’re truly going to be more parks and less resort/pool, FS may not be worth it as the pool complex, kids club, and amenities are really the star of the show when staying here (in my humble opinion). The room configurations and sleeping arrangements can be sort of hard to figure out, but rooms can be customized/connected in a variety of guaranteed ways and you can actually get real/straight answers when booking. The chat/text function is wonderful at figuring things like this out.

Sorry for the ramble, happy to answer any questions.