I am happy to stay in a value for a “normal” trip.
On race trips, I prefer a moderate, as a key portion of my running recovery is to sit in the hot tub/Jacuzzi after the race - especially when I have multiple race days in a row. Value resorts do not have hot tubs.
I tend to use races as an excuse to go to WDW far more often than non-race trips. Oh well…
We would never use the hot tub, but then we’d never run either!
Like you said, “different strokes.” There’s no wrong answer. I’ve yet to understand the appeal of the dining plan, and the thought of paying the rack rate makes me nauseous. But if it makes other people happy, more power to ‘em. They’re not spending my money.
There is no substitute for the original Kraft Mac & Cheese.
We went a few years ago for the first time and splurged on CR castle view b/c our daughter was 4 and we weren’t sure if she would make it to fireworks. Well, we never saw fireworks from MK or the room lol . It was fun to see the castle and wake up in the middle of night and see it out there, but we don’t bother now. Even at poly, we can walk to the beach and watch with everyone else.
Of course, I don’t care what other people spend their money on. Free dining is basically the discount we get in the U.K. so we go with it, we’d break even if we paid for it - but we wouldn’t have a room discount.
We watched the MK fireworks at least half the nights we were there from our room at WL. Our kids are at an age where we sometimes stayed in the parks late and sometimes left a little earlier. Watching the fireworks from the room was the perfect way to wind down. Then we crawled right into bed when they were done.
Good points. I guess I see things like a dessert party as adding value to my vacation, but I don’t feel a view does. Preferences vary obviously.
We lucked into a Lagoon View at GF one year (were supposed to stay WL with preferred view and got moved due to the construction at WL and a very proactive travel agent) and the view was awesome. We spent a lot of time on the deck in December watching fireworks, the electric boat parade, or just staring at the castle and it was great.
Our most recent trip in July we were at BC in standard view and got upgraded to water view. Had a nice view of Boardwalk and could see the Star Wars fireworks from the room above the Boardwalk, but frankly it was so hot we never wanted the door open to really enjoy the mini deck. Time of year really effected us on how often we’d enjoy the deck and view. Basically I think it was cool we got upgraded, but I wouldn’t have wanted to have paid for the privilege on our last trip. At GF I was glad I had planned to pay extra at WL which morphed into a lagoon view that was special…
Admittedly I don’t keep tabs on the country-specific differences in Disney marketing. Which brings to mind another important factor - travel expenses. Even at peak fuel prices our round-trip travel expenses are less than $100 U.S. If we had to travel from the U.K. I expect our lodging discussions would be quite different.
We pay about £1000 for each person, so about $3900 total for flights. It’s cheaper in off times but that’s when the kids are in school and we get fined for taking them out of school so…
At those rates I might have to find an overpass to sleep under.
Yikes. And I cringe at the $300 I have to pay for the gas to get down to and back from Florida!
Yeah that’s why we don’t go very often!
I wish I lived over there!
I’ve been tempted to give one a try, but we usually wind up adding on something else. Especially if it involves animals. Next trip it’s Savor the Savanna.
Plus, being lactose intolerant within the confined space of a dessert party would not be magical. For anybody.
That’s a different question! I generally stay off site, but if there were some reason I had chosen to pay for a Disney deluxe resort, then there are scenarios where I’d pay even more for the view.
A related question though I think!
I prefer the prices at the moderates of course, but the deluxe options do allow for 3 sleeping surfaces at many of them, which is necessary for my girl/boy teens. The pull down beds at CBR and POR are not long enough anymore. I would rather pay extra to have both my kids in their own bed, than save money and have one sleeping in an air mattress on the floor. Just another perspective!
Now a view, I won’t pay for that as we rarely look out the window. We did quite a bit at AKL with daily afternoon breaks, but I only paid for standard. We were able to get not only a room with bunks, but also a fantastic animal viewing area for much less than the savannah view rooms.
I’m with you. We always do the MK party over spring break, first Wishes and now HEA. Have done the Star Wars party twice, and just today booked the Jingle Bam party for December. I am a sucker for a dessert party I guess! 
I find them to be worth every penny.