Curious what Disney World resort is right for you? One Disney parent shares their take on the best Disney World hotels to consider with kids.

There is no decision you will make that will impact your Disney World trip quite as much as choosing the Disney Resort Hotel (or off-site property) that will be your home base. Your resort is so much more than where you will rest your head during your stay. Food and fun, travel and theming… the energy your Resort provides will shape every aspect of your vacation. When the options are this good, how can you lose? Well, you really can’t, and winning is good… but winning in a landslide is better!

Disney World Hotels With Kids: What to Consider

The biggest complication for parents at Disney World is the kids (which should come as no surprise!). When they are little, your choices are built around accommodating their needs. As they get older, they get more adventurous, and you’d better be ready to go there with them! No matter how much you mastered your holiday last time around, it’s worth running the checklist again. So, as a Disney Dad, here are the things I consider when looking for a Disney World hotel with kids.

Price is Right, and Let’s Make a Deal!

I tried and I tried to not put this one first, but it’s impossible. If you listen to your heart to the exclusion of your head, it’s very easy to wind up with an incredible holiday that you absolutely cannot afford. No matter if you are planning your first Disney World adventure or your twenty-first, do your math homework before you start doing the fun stuff. Disney resorts are divided into rough categories, Value, Moderate, and Deluxe, and if you start by agreeing on which category is right for you this time, you’ve already made great strides in whittling your choices down.

Disney Skyliner station at Disney’s Art of Animation and Pop Century Resorts. Photo by Morgan Flaherty

I’m including “deals” in this item because sometimes a special offer can give you a bump you didn’t know you needed to upgrade your stay. Check Disney’s “Deals and Discounts” page and see what you can find. If you’re planning on travelling at a high volume time of the year, you might not be overwhelmed by options, but I know we have been pleasantly surprised more than once. Years ago we had settled into a happy little rut of Value resorts, and were lured into trying (and loving) some Moderates and even a couple of Deluxe resorts because there were offers we just couldn’t refuse. (Caveat: Once you cross over, it can be hard to go back!)

Is There Zoom to Your Room?

The fastest way to make it difficult to get where you want to be is not knowing exactly where that is, and preventing that means admitting that there is no single way to do Disney. Take a little time to think through your ground game. If this is your first trip, no doubt you want to be close to the parks. I know I still do. The trouble is this: the parks are not all particularly close to one another, and you’re going to want to visit them all anyway. So you absolutely can book your resort based on a walking path you covet, or a friendship to Disney Springs you want to take every night, or being close to the Skyliner, but sooner or later you’re going to find yourself on a good ol’ Disney Transportation System Bus, and so is everybody else.

That’s not to say that Location and Transportation aren’t important. A warning flag for me is when you see a lot of comments about multiple stops or a convoluted bus route eating up the clock, particularly since we like to hit a couple of parks each day, with a rest at the hotel in between. Once you escape the gravity of the resort, it’s mostly clear sailing to the parks, but investigate the in-resort routes before you book.

The Food Court is in Session

A big part of the fun at Disney World is the food, and wherever you choose to stay, you will find yourself surrounded by dining options, fine and otherwise. Most of these should not impact your choice of resort. There’s no particular reason to book a stay at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort because you want to eat at ‘Ohana (although both of those things are lovely to do). Particularly if you are travelling with kids, you will eat at the resort food court more often than anywhere else, so make it a good one. A larger food court with more stations means more choices for your picky eater to reject before ordering macaroni and cheese with chicken nuggets yet again.

Photo by Marisa Avarado

Meals eaten at the resort’s quick service restaurant will not be the most memorable of your trip, but they can be the most stress-free, “everybody’s happy” option on any particular day, not to mention the most likely to involve Mickey waffles, so choose wisely!

If the Pool Fits…

There are many amenities and perks that can plus your stay, but for the most part you will be eligible for all of those if you are staying at any Disney World Resort Hotel. (The notable exception being Extended Evening Hours, which are for guests at Deluxe resorts, and which you probably have no use for if you are travelling with young kids. I know mine always turned into pumpkins long before the clock chimed twelve.)

The remaining bit of shopping around you can do that will have the biggest impact on your holiday is picking the pool that best suits your family’s age and comfort level. Disney Resort Hotel pools are terrific, but they aren’t all for everyone. There’s no sense in shelling out Yacht Club / Beach Club money to have access to the amazing Stormalong Bay if you’re travelling with toddlers who would be happier in a nice splash pad. If you’re looking for a little more help on this one, we’ve got you covered with our picks for the best pools.

Let the Whole Team Play!

Theming is a huge part of the magic at any Disney World Resort Hotel, but, be honest Disney Dads and Moms, you don’t really want to land the plane solo, do you? If you’ve gone through the checklist to this point, you’ve probably got things whittled down to a shortlist of options in your price range, with good transportation options, a nice quick service dining option, and a super-fun pool. Now it’s time to turn it into a family event. If only there were some way to let the whole gang have a hand in choosing, walking through the rooms, and getting a feel for the resort. In fact, there is!

I love to use the Room Tours and Resort Tours that WDW Magazine has in their “Walt Disney World Official Resorts” playlist on YouTube. It’s a great way to get a real feel for your finalists, give the kids some agency in turning their dreams into reality, and for all of you to get even more excited about your next Disney Adventure!