Where to Stay on Property at Disney?

I will second Old Key West, we've stayed there twice and will definitely stay there again. Port Orleans is also very nice. Honestly you can go wrong with the moderately priced and above hotels. If possible steer away from the value priced, they cram as many people as they can into those hotels and that means they cram as many people as they can on the busses going to and from the parks. (Different hotels have different busses.)

Have Fun!!

Go to allears.net. That site tells you EVERYTHING you ever wanted to know about Disney.

We like Old Key West.
We do a villa, share it with our kids (also 6 and 4), and my parents. Everybody splits the room, it has a full kitchen so you can do meals in the room if you want, nice pool, bars, etc... and you can take the boat to downtown Disney for free.

We plan to stay there again when we go in February.

We went to Disney a year ago in May and had the best time! The weather was beautiful and we all had a magical time! When we went, we stayed at Port Orleans Riverside. It was nice and we would definately stay there again, with some minor changes. First, we stayed in the Royal Suite which was really cute and my girls loved it. The room we got was at the back of the complex we stayed at, so next time I will pay extra for a riverside view to be closer to the front and the main building. Second, we would take advantage of the fidge in the room and have groceries delivered for breakfast. I would save a lot of time and money in the mornings when we just really wanted to get to the parks.

Next time we go I am going to rent DVC points and stay at the Boardwalk Villas. We are planning to go in November 2015 and, according to the DVC rental websites, will get a studio villa for 6 nights for under $1000! Thats way cheaper than even a moderate hotel. Of course, the time of the year we are going will be a low crowd time, so the rates are cheaper, but I think May wouldn't be much different in cost. The only downside to the Boardwalk is that there is not a quick service restaurant there, but there is a bakery and pizza "window" on the Boardwalk. Also its within walking distance to the back entrance into Epcot so I plan to get the park hopper tickets and take advantage of all the different quick service restaurants they have there.
Good luck and have fun planning!

I think all the Disney resorts/hotels are great. If you can swing it, you can't beat the convenience of being on the monorail line, but those prices are steep! If you do a moderate and go back for a swim/rest break, it's just a little less convenient with transportation, and you may opt to tour the parks from rope drop to mid-afternoon, and not even attempt to go back in the evening, but rather just chill at your resort. This is what we did when my kids were 6 and 4. We stayed and Animal Kingdom Lodge, and we were all content to spend relaxing evenings at the resort after long days of touring.

We went Dec 2013 for my D's 7th Birthday. It was a surprise and worked out great. We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge- 5 nights- standard room (I think they typically upgrade first time guests). So we had a wonderful view of animals every morning when we woke up off our balcony. My D LOVED it and it kinda got us excited to get up because we wondered what was outside. The pool and restaurants were very good-and ranked as some of the best of any properties. My D is NOT an adventurous eater and they always had something for her and great quick restaurant too. Activities planned throughout the day if the kids are looking to do something fun. And African 'ambassadors' talk about their hometown-very cool. My H and I were only going to Disney for our D, But we had a great time as well-very relaxing. We would like to go back to AKL. Can't say enough good things and we have traveled quite a bit. Also have heard a lot of good things about the Wilderness Lodge. Port Orleans (moderate price) looks good too.
We went to MK twice. Mickey's Christmas Party (great!) And AK 1 day. Then instead of going to Downtown D(our plan) we stayed in on our 4th day (we were tired!) AKL was great for some pool time ;) I would be flexible. We planned most things. But there is ALOT to see and do. We hope to visit Epcot next time. Have fun!!!
PS another tip.... I ordered a case of water from Amazon (17 bucks) and free ship. It was easy and we always had cold bottled water.
I used a 30% off promo for the room. I think I would skip the meal plan next time. Too much food and I'm not convinced it's less$. I'm a big eater and found it difficult to eat all the food. (Dessert for lunch AND dinner!?
But you Do want to make your dinner reservations way ahead, you can always cancel....Hope that helps

Are you wanting to accommodate 4 people in your room or 5 (with your sister)? That would factor into my suggestions. Trip Advisor has a lot of good information if you search the resorts you are considering. The Art of Animation is one of the "value" resorts (but it is the most expensive value resort) and it has wonderful themes and things to do for kids. However, all of the value resorts just offer "food court" like dining. Another helpful website that might be of value: www.disneydining.com It is an independent site and has info that might help plan your trip. As an experienced Disney guest, I still find some of the suggestions very helpful. Animal Kingdom Lodge would be a great place to stay or also Wilderness Lodge. Neither is on the monorail line, but offer some special things to do. Have fun! (Remember, you will have to make character dining reservations very early, so don't put off making your hotel reservations too long.

We just got back from Disney. We stayed at Coronado but have also stayed at Port Orleans French Quarter. We love both!!! Look at pictures and see what style and decor appeals to you more. You honestly can't go wrong with either moderately priced hotel room.

FYI...my kids are older now so since we didn't want to do the character meals which are super expensive, and my 11 yo is considered an "adult" we opted not to get the meal plan. For our family of 4 we saved about $1,000 and we did not skimp on meals or snacks at all. (We ate at Downtown Disney 4 out of 9 nights). We also ordered water from Staples. They deliver it to your hotel. (It sure beat paying $4 a bottle at the park:). Have a great time.

We went every 2 years when our daughter was age 2-16. The only place we ever stayed was the Polynesian. We LOVE that hotel. I could stay there and never visit a park at all.

Depending on time of year, pricing changes. Most standard rooms have a small fridge and I believe a microwave. We stayed in the Conceirge tower a couple of times which was pricier BUT, had a lot of extra perks such as light breakfast, lunch, dinner, happy hour and dessert. Food (fruits, snacks, drink) were available 24/7. Granted it was not 5 star food but it wasn't bad and we enjoyed it. We went to nice restaurants at Epcot and did character events.

We loved Polynesian because it was on the main monorail line. You could take the monorail or boat taxi to MK and that was SO easy with a little one to bring back to the room for rest time or get something you forgot in the room. They have a beach where you can watch the nightly fireworks from MK, the pool was nice, other water activities were available as well.

I've not been in about 5 yrs so I am sure it has changed some but it was worth the money for us to stay there. The Grand Floridian and Contemporary are on that monorail line as well and very nice. We enjoyed the beach atmosphere of Polynesian and loved the luau.

Enjoy!

The Disneyland Hotel is great. Not as fancy as the Grand ... but the pool is amazing and less crowded. We loved it with our 3 and 5 year old.
Have a grea time!!!

I haven't read through all the responses you've received, but I can tell you about our 1st Disney experience last October. We stayed at a moderate resort (fit all of our needs). I chose the Port Orleans Riverside. It was absolutely perfect! We stayed in the Alligator Bayou area and put in a request for a room that slept 5. I was told that virtually no moderate resorts will sleep 5 comfortably, except Riverside. Also, most resorts offer 2 double beds and Riverside offered 2 Queens with a pull down trundle bed, which my youngest slept in and loved! The Alligator Bayou section is close to the pool (which had great organized activities for the kids) and the main food area.

We did the dining plan that had a sit down meal, counter service and snack each day. It was enough! All of the good places to eat book 180 days out, so I would make those reservations quickly. If you want good places to eat (and they can be found, other than fast food), you will want to book reservations in advance and not wing it. Disney takes a lot of planning, but it can be done and it will make your trip that much more relaxing and worth it when you get there! Then all you have to do is enjoy the experience. Good luck!!