Top Disney World Resorts

Wondering the best Disney World Resorts for your family vacation?

Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

Our first hotel in our Top Disney World Resorts is a less expensive Disney Resort, but filled with a lot of magic. This Value + Resort is called Disney’s Art of Animation. This resort is our favorite themed resort at Disney World.

Disney’s Art of Animation Resort has several different sections, including The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Finding Nemo, and CARS. Each section is truly amazing with larger than life characters. We love walking through Disney’s Art of Animation to get pictures with the family. So many amazing photo opps!

Disney’s Art of Animation also has a room category called Family Suites. These suites are basically two standard rooms built into one Family Suite. This means you have 2 bathrooms, which is huge for a family. They also have a pull down Murphy Bed that converts into a table with chairs. These suites are amazing and a lot less expensive than a 2-Bedroom Villa at one of the Disney Deluxe Villa Resorts.

The main pool is called the The Big Blue (themed after Finding Nemo). It is amazing! You can even hear Dory underwater! This pool is currently going through a renovation and is closed. It will reopen later in April. Once this pool reopens in April, we would recommend this family friendly budget resort for your Disney World vacation..

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village

Imagine a giraffe or zebra right outside your balcony room? You will find this amazing experience in the Savanna View Rooms at Kidani Village at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. This is an incredible experience for the whole family!

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge Kidani Village is truly a unique resort. This is part of the Disney Vacation Club, so the rooms are spacious including Studios, 1-Bedroom, 2-Bedroom, and 3-Bedroom villas. We love these rooms for families. We also love the animal experiences, culture, and dining. One of my favorite restaurants at Disney World is located at this resort called Sanaa. 

One of the downsides of this resort is the amenities. Since it is focused on the animals, there are not as many resort amenities as some of the other Disney Deluxe Resorts. However, the animal experiences make it a once-in-a-lifetime resort.

Disney’s Old Key West Resort

Our next Disney World Resort takes us to the Florida Keys. These are tropical islands at the tip of Florida. Disney captures this atmosphere at Disney’s Old Key West Resort. This resort is also considered a Disney Deluxe Villa Resort.

This resort has a cute pool area with dolphins, a lighthouse, and a huge sand castle with a waterslide. You can also play tennis, volleyball, rent a Surrey Bike, or play some outdoor games.

Disney’s Old Key West Resort also has one of our favorite restaurants called Olivia’s Cafe. This restaurant serves seafood and even Key Lime Pie. It is a hidden gem among dining at Disney World.

One downside to Disney’s Old Key West is the size. This resort is very spread out. If you do not mind walking a bit, this is a family friendly resort.

Disney’s Pop Century

Our next top Disney World Resort is Disney’s Pop Century Resort. This is a Disney Value Resort. Plus, it is located in a different county in Orlando (where the tax rate is less) so Disney’s Pop Century Resort is the least expensive hotel at Disney World.

This resort was built after Disney’s All Star Resorts, so Disney “upgraded” this resort. They took all of the good and the bad and made it better at Disney’s Pop Century Resort.

I love the food court at Disney’s Pop Century Resort, all of the themed pools, and the newly renovated rooms. These new rooms are perfect for a family. 

I am sure you are wondering why this resort did not make higher on our best list? This resort is a less expensive hotel, so it is more popular for youth groups and family reunions. This means a lot more noise than other Disney Resorts. 

Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort in Gran Destino Tower

Our next hotel is a hidden gem. This resort is called Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. This is a convention hotel, so it has a few more resort amenities than other Disney Moderate Resorts. Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort also has a brand new tower called Gran Destino. This new tower is amazing!

The rooms and Gran Destino Tower reminds me of a Disney Deluxe Resort at a moderate price tag. The rooms are spectacular with views of Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort or Disney World. You can even see Galaxy’s Edge from some of the rooms.

The new restaurants at the top of Gran Destino are amazing with a lounge and sit down dining. Both of these restaurants have incredible views of Disney World. With the addition of Gran Destino, Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort jumped up higher in our list.

One of the big downsides to this resort is the groups. Since it is a convention hotel, there are a lot of groups that stay at this property. Most of the time it is just adults, but during certain events it can be youth. This can make the pool and other main areas very crowded and loud.

Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort

Our favorite Disney Moderate Resort and next top Disney World hotel is Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. This resort recently finished a huge renovation and it is spectacular! We were always a fan of Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort and now even more. 

One of the new additions is the new Skyliner. You can hop on this new transportation to get around the Walt Disney World Resort. Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort has an amazing food court area and restaurant called Sebastian’s Bistro. This sit down restaurant is another hidden gem at Disney World.

We also love the pool area of this resort with a fort and the Pirate Ship splash park. You can also walk to Disney’s Riviera Resort for a character breakfast, shop at the merchandise shop, or sit in a chair on the lake. It is a wonderful family resort at Disney World.

One of the big downsides to this resort is the size. This is a resort, so it is very spread out. It takes a leisure 5 minute walk to get from one end of the resort to the other end of the resort.

Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Villas

The most luxurious Disney World Resort is Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. This resort is also the most expensive resort. This Victorian themed resort has more dining, activities, and shopping than any other Disney World hotel.

You are also a quick monorail ride away from Magic Kingdom and Epcot. If you would like to walk, you can take the new walking trail to Magic Kingdom. 

Even the main pool area is amazing with cabanas and an Alice in Wonderland themed splash park. You can even watch the Electrical Water Pageant in lounge chairs on the Seven Seas Lagoon. This is a beautiful family friendly resort, but it does come with a more expensive price tag.

Disney’s Boardwalk Villas

Disney’s Boardwalk Villas Resort took a big jump in our top Disney World hotels. After many many years, Disney’s Boardwalk Resort & Villas finally updated their scary clown slide to a cute Disney Character slide. Updating this slide, moved Disney’s Boardwalk Villas to one of our favorite Disney Resorts.

This Disney Deluxe Resort has several restaurants and gift shops on an old fashioned boardwalk. You can even enjoy entertainers in the evening hours.

 Disney’s Boardwalk Villas also centrally located at Disney World. It is walking distance or a quick Friendship boat ride away from Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

This resort has lots of shopping, dining, and activities for the whole family.

Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, Boulder Ridge Villas, and Copper Creek Villas

Our next top Disney World hotel is Disney’s Wilderness Lodge properties. Tim & I love Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Resort. Disney recently made this resort even better.

Disney’s Wilderness Lodge features a fun themed pool with waterslide, geiser, and even spa. The lodge is beautiful, themed after the lodge at Yellowstone. You can even take a free Hidden Mickey hunt around the lodge.

There are several amazing dining locations, including the popular Whispering Canyon Cafe. You can even rent bikes to ride over to Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. We love the location, resort theming, and amenities at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Resort.

Riviera Resort

The next Top Disney World hotel is actually the newest hotel at Disney World called Disney’s Riviera Resort. This resort is located next to Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. You also have access to the Skyliner to Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Epcot.

We love the theme of this Italian Resort with a cute themed pool and splash park for the little ones. There are also several dining experiences, including the only Disney Resort character dining with Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, and Donald. This new Disney Deluxe Villa has so many resort amenities for tons of family fun.

Disney’s Beach Club Resort & Disney’s Yacht Club Resort & Villas

We are to the #1 of the Top Disney World hotels. The Disney Deluxe Resorts called Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, Disney’s Beach Club Resort, and Disney’s Beach Club Villas are located side by side in the Epcot Resort Area. These resorts have different themes, but share a huge 3 acre pool area, dining, and shopping.

We love these Disney Deluxe Resorts. You are walking distance to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. You can also hop on the Friendship boat for a ride to these theme parks. The pool area called Stormalong Bay is another huge perk with a Pirate Ship water slide, lazy river, sandy beach entry pool, and more water fun.

There are also several dining options at Disney Yacht & Beach Club Resorts, including quick service and sit down dining. This resort has so many amazing benefits for the whole family making it our favorite Disney World hotel.

We hope this helps you plan your Disney World vacation. What is your favorite Disney Resort? Leave a comment below.