Ideas about vacation. Vacation Planning Tips & Tricks Discuss Ideas about vacation. in the Vacation Planning forums; First off I've been to Disney many a time and most recent last May. My wife and I again are going to Disney Mar 26 thru Apr 2 and I ...

[Tmntrans]

First off I've been to Disney many a time and most recent last May. My wife and I again are going to Disney Mar 26 thru Apr 2 and I am considering staying at at least a moderate resort with a nice/trick pool. What resort has the best?.maybe the one with the galleon I think but I don't remember which one. What resort would I stay at to maybe try different pools??I'm planning on spending limited times in the parks and now want to explore what the other resorts have to offer far as entertainment or dining. I will see the show at Downtown Disney. And eat there at Puck's. Is there a Luau or dinner shows at on of the resorts??? I'm treating the wife to one of the spas but don't know which one. I also plan on horseback riding and maybe parasailing and jetski and as well as a round or 2 of golf. I want to show her there is much more than just the parks. Also gonna spend couple days at Universal --we.ve never been ther before..but was told to expect somewhat less quality of service.
Oh yeah..no kids this time. This is our anniversary trip and we did it last year without them but was too pushed by doing it in 5 days 4 nites. We plan on seeing upgrades to the parks and only rides we like so opening up oppurtunity to explore Disney. We are premium pass holds and wonder is any discount associated with them ?? I heard from someone that somethings are if you show them your pass.

[SnwhtNdwrfs]

I think you could stay at Port Orleans and be able to try both Riverside and French Quarter's pools. I hear the French Quarter pool is pretty cool. As far as quality of service, I was pleased with Port Orleans-Riverside. DH and I went by ourselves two years ago and enjoyed the peace and quiet of this resort. THere is a Luau but I have never been. There are so many different resorts that have romantic dining that you could try. I liked Artist Point at Wilderness Lodge but we ate some very nice romantic, quiet meals at Epcot.

Anyway, that is my 2 cents worth. HAVE FUN! It will be a great trip the way it sounds. Enjoy it!

[tizzo]

Originally Posted by Tmntrans

First off I've been to Disney many a time and most recent last May. My wife and I again are going to Disney Mar 26 thru Apr 2 and I am considering staying at at least a moderate resort with a nice/trick pool. What resort has the best?.maybe the one with the galleon I think but I don't remember which one. What resort would I stay at to maybe try different pools??I'm planning on spending limited times in the parks and now want to explore what the other resorts have to offer far as entertainment or dining. I will see the show at Downtown Disney. And eat there at Puck's. Is there a Luau or dinner shows at on of the resorts??? I'm treating the wife to one of the spas but don't know which one. I also plan on horseback riding and maybe parasailing and jetski and as well as a round or 2 of golf. I want to show her there is much more than just the parks. Also gonna spend couple days at Universal --we.ve never been ther before..but was told to expect somewhat less quality of service.
Oh yeah..no kids this time. This is our anniversary trip and we did it last year without them but was too pushed by doing it in 5 days 4 nites. We plan on seeing upgrades to the parks and only rides we like so opening up oppurtunity to explore Disney. We are premium pass holds and wonder is any discount associated with them ?? I heard from someone that somethings are if you show them your pass.

There used to be some decent discounts with annual passes, but they've slowly dwindled over the years. There are for example still 10% dining discounts at selected restaurants throughout the property, but they are now only good on weekdays (not including Friday) and only at lunch time. You can still get 50% off a round of mini-golf I think. I know if you go to disneyworld.com there is a "Passholder" link that takes you to a section that you can log into using the letters and numbers printed on the back of your pass. Once there, you can get a list of all the passholder benefits, including all the standing offers like discounts on tours, dining, and shopping, and also including any special or limited time offers.

If you're lucky, your stay will coincide with one of their passholder resort deals. Once or twice a year I get a mailing telling me how I can stay at a value resort for $59, or a moderate for $79. But it's always for specific dates during narrow windows of time, and they also constrain when you can book, and there are limited rooms at that rate on a first come first served basis. I've never actually used that particular perk before, but from what I can tell it represents a pretty substantial discount.

[disneydame2004]

Originally Posted by Tmntrans

First off I've been to Disney many a time and most recent last May. My wife and I again are going to Disney Mar 26 thru Apr 2 and I am considering staying at at least a moderate resort with a nice/trick pool. What resort has the best?.maybe the one with the galleon I think but I don't remember which one. What resort would I stay at to maybe try different pools??

The pool "with the galleon" is StormAlong Bay at the Yacht and Beach Club resorts. You can only use that pool if you are staying at Yacht Club, Beach Club (both deluxe resorts), or the Beach Club Villas - and they check ID to enforce that. Of the moderate resorts, as was stated by SnwhtNdwrfs above, only the Port Orleans resorts let you use either pool. Riverside has Ol' Man Island, which is a winding pool with nice features. French Quarter has a sea serpent slide that is a favorite of many. Caribbean Beach's main feature pool may be undergoing a refurbishment from January through mid-September next year, according to the WDW Radio Show podcast's Rumor Mill . Coronado Springs has a pyramid at its pool.

Originally Posted by Tmntrans

I'm planning on spending limited times in the parks and now want to explore what the other resorts have to offer far as entertainment or dining. I will see the show at Downtown Disney. And eat there at Puck's. Is there a Luau or dinner shows at on of the resorts??? I'm treating the wife to one of the spas but don't know which one. I also plan on horseback riding and maybe parasailing and jetski and as well as a round or 2 of golf. I want to show her there is much more than just the parks.

The Polynesian Resort has the Spirit of Aloha dinner show/luau. It's an okay show, IMHO, using some of the music from Lilo & Stitch and a somewhat forced story line. The other dinner show is the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue at Fort Wilderness - corny and fun, with down-home cookin'.
You might consider California Grill at the Contemporary - no dinner show, but if you time your reservation right, you can watch Wishes! from your table, and the view from the top floor of the Contemporary is really cool.
Also consider spending some time at Disney's Boardwalk, both for dining and for entertainment.

Originally Posted by Tmntrans

Also gonna spend couple days at Universal --we.ve never been ther before..but was told to expect somewhat less quality of service.
Oh yeah..no kids this time. This is our anniversary trip and we did it last year without them but was too pushed by doing it in 5 days 4 nites. We plan on seeing upgrades to the parks and only rides we like so opening up oppurtunity to explore Disney. We are premium pass holds and wonder is any discount associated with them ?? I heard from someone that somethings are if you show them your pass.

Universal??? never heard of them

Some other ways to explore the parks without kids: take a backstage tour, or one of the Segway ones at Epcot. Tizzo steered you to the right place for the Passholder discounts.

Happy planning!