BWI or POR?

[Madeleinebelle]

Hi! I’ve stayed at POR twice and had the best time. My husband and I are going in May and with the sun and fun promotion we’ve switched to BWI. I’m having second thoughts because I know the layout of POR and like the food court. I like being able to take food back to the room and eat in the room. We are interested in BWI due to the proximity of Epcot. Any opinions of which is better?

 

[piccolopat]

We haven't stayed at BWI but have at YC, BC and Swan. We love the convenience of being able to walk or boat to Epcot and the Studios. You won't have a food court here, but there are places to get food to take back to your room on the BW and at the neighboring hotels. In our recent Swan stay, we tried Pikabu at the Dolphin (open 24hrs I think) and enjoyed the food there. We saw that we could have that food "to go" if we wanted. We stayed at POR-Riverside a couple of times and really liked it there but the location was not as convenient since we had to drive or take a bus. The boat to Disney Springs was a nice perk.

 

[SheriRae]

You can't beat BWI's location with the ability to walk two parks. We also LOVE taking our quick service meals from Boardwalk Bakery or pizza from the pizza window to the quiet pool to eat...we do it all the time. Taking your meal back to your room is totally doable at BW. Personally, I would stick with BWI with it's proximity to Epcot and HS.

 

[Sue M]

While I love POR, you can’t beat the location of the Epcot resorts. I haven’t stayed at BWI, but have stayed at BC & YC.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Hands down - BWI.

 

[nkereina]

BWI is nicer and much more convenient in terms of location, but I will say that they do have fewer QS options than POR. By design, all deluxe resorts have less robust QS options than the moderates and values because all of them have more than one TS restaurant instead. POR has one of my favorite food courts on property, and the options at BWI don't compare. There are additional options over at BC/YC and Swan/Dolphin, but it wouldn't be that quick and easy to carry the food back to your room at BWI from those places.

If it were me staying at BWI, I'd want to take full advantage of being so close to Epcot by popping in and out of the World Showcase for meals. The Boardwalk itself also has some nice TS dining options.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Hi! I’ve stayed at POR twice and had the best time. My husband and I are going in May and with the sun and fun promotion we’ve switched to BWI. I’m having second thoughts because I know the layout of POR and like the food court. I like being able to take food back to the room and eat in the room. We are interested in BWI due to the proximity of Epcot. Any opinions of which is better?

You really can't compare a deluxe resort to a moderate resort.

We really like POR but with the multiple bus stops and multiple buildings, the BWI has better transportation. Everything is under one roof at BWI and it has only one bus stop. BWI doesn't have a good quick service location and the food court at POR is better for that. But BWI has a much bigger selection of places to eat within walking distance of the resort.

The BWI rooms are bigger and nicer and I think most of them have a daybed.

 

[Brett Wyman]

There isn't a Deluxe at WDW that doesn't beat out a moderate. Its always a better choice when money isn't factored in.

That being said, like PP mentioned, BWI is lacking in the quick service area. However you can eat at BWI, BC, YC, Swan, Dolphin, or Epcot instead. And you can walk to two parks and have direct access to the Skyliner.

 

[Ksquared]

You can't beat BWI's location with the ability to walk two parks. We also LOVE taking our quick service meals from Boardwalk Bakery or pizza from the pizza window to the quiet pool to eat...we do it all the time. Taking your meal back to your room is totally doable at BW. Personally, I would stick with BWI with it's proximity to Epcot and HS.

I agree with this 100% - also, we found ourselves walking over to Epcot to grab a counter service lunch more than we thought we would

 

[TTA Rider Matt]

Ditto everything everyone has said on this thread. I can't even think of anything else to add!

 

[disneyseniors]

I have never stayed at BW, but it sounds lovely. If you are Epcot people, then I would stay there. Also, HS is the choice park at this time it seems. BW sounds perfect for you.
It is an individual thing. We spend less than half a day at Epcot; just prefer other parks more, so POR is our choice. We like the tropical feel of the AB side, love the food court, and the resort store is the best we've seen at WDW, IMO> We like the size and different atmospheres from the Mansions to the AB. There is also a fun carriage ride and other activities, including heehaw Bob. The 4 bus stops have never been a problem for us and we have stayed at POR many times. It's the kind of atmosphere that we like - there is no right or wrong, just what you like. Have a great trip.

 

[buzznina]

If $$ is not a factor than BW.

 

[loves to dive]

Another one who is hands down BWI, if the money isn't an issue that is. I love all the Epcot resorts, including Swan/Dolphin which you can often get for the price of a Disney moderate.

 

[S.o.N.D.]

We've stayed at both. BWI is the nicer hotel, and the easy access to Epcot really can't be beat. HOWEVER, we found that the main pool was overly crowded i.e. not fun, and the lack of QS options at the resort was a major downside for us. The Riverside Mill at POR is great, and we love taking the boat to Disney Springs. We are headed back to POR for our next trip.

 

[terri33inne]

Have stayed at both, and love both. POR is my go-to if we're staying moderate. BWI is my hands down favorite resort. I do miss the QS option as others have stated, but the location, and general vibe of BW more than makes up for it. Also, if we're going for a longer trip I will book a studio on the villa side to give us a microwave, sink, dishes, etc. The cost is typically the same if not lower than a standard room. I do an instacart order from Publix of cereal, milk, yogurt, cheese, popcorn, etc to have some food in our room.