10 BIGGEST DISNEY WORLD RESORTS – ULTIMATE GUIDE

Walt Disney World doesn’t do anything small, from Cinderella’s towering castle at Magic Kingdom to the highest peak of Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom, and their resorts are no exception. Disney goes all-out when it comes to guest comfort and satisfaction. But they also like to go big with some of their resorts as well!

Have you ever wondered which resort is the biggest? Or which one has the biggest pool? How about the biggest room?

We’re going to share with you the Top 10 Biggest Walt Disney World resorts, in order of actual acreage. Along the way, we’ll also give you some big facts and figures about the resorts. Are you ready to go big?

Our first resort, nestled right in between Disney Springs and Epcot, is Disney’s Old Key West Resort. The resort offers 761 rooms, from the standard 390 square foot Studio Room to the gigantic 2,375 square foot three-bedroom grand villa. As the name of the resort implies, the decor is reminiscent of quaint, turn-of-the-century south Florida beachside homes and villas. Rooms are elegant, yet understated and simple.

Old Key West has only one sit-down restaurant (Olivia’s Cafe), two counter-service locations (Good’s Food To Go and Turtle Shack), and a bar (Gurgling Suitcase) for full-service drinks and simple snacks. Just follow the lighthouse to find Old Key West’s main pool (The Sandcastle Pool), which also has a water slide for the kids! For a more relaxing pool experience, the resort has three other “quiet” pools scattered around the grounds.

BIG FACTS: Disney’s Old Key West resort is the first Disney Vacation Club Resort (it was originally just called “Disney’s Vacation Club Resort”), and it also has the largest rooms of any of the DVC Resorts!

Located just southeast of Hollywood Studios, Disney’s Art of Animation celebrates the art form that made Disney famous: animation! As soon as you walk into the lobby, you’ll see sketches and concept art from your favorite Disney animated films. There are 1,984 rooms at the resort: 864 standard rooms (277 square feet) and 1,120 family suites (565 square feet).

What makes Disney’s Art of Animation Resort unique is the incredible theming around the different areas of the resort. The resort has four areas themed after different Disney animated films: Cars, Finding Nemo, The Lion King, and The Little Mermaid. Each area has gigantic statues of characters from the movies, including Ariel, Mufasa, and Mr. Ray! Kids will definitely get a kick out of seeing enormous versions of some of their favorite characters.

Since the resort is geared more towards families, there are no sit-down restaurants. However, there is a food court (Landscape of Flavors) that offers a variety of grab-and-go options, including smoothies, sandwiches, pizza, and burgers.

BIG FACT: Disney’s Art of Animation Resort has the largest pool of any Disney resort! Found in the Finding Nemo area, the “Big Blue” pool is over 11,000 square feet and holds 310,000 gallons of water!

Situated just east of the Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Pop Century Resort has a staggering 2,880 rooms! The rooms come in two varieties: standard and preferred. The main difference between the two is where they are situated. Preferred rooms are closer to the main lobby and transportation options. Both rooms are 260 square feet with either 2 Queen Beds (one being a hidden “pull-down” bed) or 1 King Bed.

Disney’s Pop Century Resort is themed after American pop culture through the decades. There are five differently-themed areas of the resort: 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s, with matching decor! The 50’s area features jukeboxes, vinyl records, and a Lady and the Tramp statue (the film debuted in 1955). You’ll find hippie flowers and the flower-shaped “Hippie Dippy” pool in the 60’s area. The 70’s has 8-tracks, disco, and a four-story tall Big Wheel. In the 80’s area, there’s Rubik’s Cubes and Mr. Potato Head. Finally, the 90’s contains cell phones, giant floppy disks, and a computer keyboard.

Similar to the Art of Animation Resort, there is only a food court option (Everything Pop) with sandwiches, snacks, drinks, and more.

BIG FACT: The Art of Animation and Pop Century Resorts were originally supposed to be one giant resort! Construction was halted halfway, and when resumed, it was decided to make two unique resorts. If they were completed together, the hypothetical 70-acre resort would have tied with our number five spot. Keep reading to see what it is!

To the northeast of Epcot is Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside. Looking around the resort, you’ll think you’re in the bayous of Louisiana! The 2,048 rooms are divided into two sections: Alligator Bayou and Magnolia Bend. The rooms are 314 square feet and come in Standard, Preferred, and Garden View varieties. An upgrade to a Princess and the Frog-style room may also be available to add that extra bit of magic!

Port Orleans Riverside offers two main dining options: a quick-service food court (Riverside Mill) and a cajun-style restaurant (Boatwrights). There is also a lounge (River Roost) that has a full-service bar and small bites. 6 pools are spread throughout the resort. The main pool is actually situated on an island (Old Man’s Island) and is styled after a southern watering hole, complete with a water slide! In addition, there’s a poolside full-service bar called “The Muddy Rivers” for alcoholic drinks and snacks.

BIG FACT: The Sassagoula River that encircles Old Man’s Island stretches for almost 2 miles and connects Port Orleans Riverside, French Quarter, Saratoga Springs, and Disney Springs!

Every Disney resort is unique and special in its own way. But no other resort offers you the chance to wake up to a giraffe outside your window! Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, located just west of Animal Kingdom, shares its area with a 33-acre wildlife preserve, populated with the aforementioned giraffes, zebras, kudu, flamingos, and much more! Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge has 1,293 rooms, divided between the Jambo House, which is the main resort area, and the Kidani Village, where the Disney Vacation Club Villas are located. The rooms can be either 344 square feet (Standard) or 381 square feet (Deluxe). If you want the chance to have breakfast with that giraffe, make sure to get a Savanna view room!

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge offers very singular dining experiences, unlike any other Disney resort. The signature restaurant is Jiko - The Cooking Place, offering an exotic menu with such delights as wild boar tenderloin, lamb tagine, and seafood curry. Also at the Animal Kingdom lodge is Boma - Flavors of Africa. Boma is a buffet-style restaurant with African and Mediterranean delicacies, a meat-carving station, and various soups, salads, and desserts. There’s another sit-down restaurant, Sanaa, with more Indian-inspired dishes, and a quick-service food court called “The Mara.” Delicious food is never far away at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge!

BIG FACT: Animal Kingdom Lodge has another gigantic pool for a Disney resort, measuring almost 11,000 square feet! The pool is designed to mimic a more natural body of water, with several “zero-entry” slopes leading into it. Surrounding the pool is a variety of lounges, a playground, and a poolside bar.

Northwest of Hollywood Studios is Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. Inspired by Hispanic and Latin American culture, this sprawling resort has 2,466 available rooms. The standard room size is 314 square feet, with either 2 Queen beds or 1 King size bed. The largest room available is the Executive Suite. At 1,570 square feet, it comfortably sleeps 8, with one King bed, two Queen beds, and a pull-out sleeper sofa. Coronado Springs recently received a huge update in the form of the 15-story Gran Destino Tower, which now also serves as the resort’s front entrance and main lobby.

Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort features 8 restaurants and lounges. In the Gran Destino Tower, you can enjoy drinks and small plates at either the Barcelona or Dahlia Lounges. Toledo - Tapas, Steaks & Seafood is Gran Destino’s rooftop sit-down restaurant. Other dining options around the resort include El Mercado de Coronado (quick-service food court), Maya Grill, Rix Sports Bar & Grill, Three Bridges Bar and Grill, and Siestas (poolside bar).

BIG FACT: Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort is the only “Moderate” level resort to have an available convention center, and it is amassive220,000 square feet of boardrooms and meeting spaces.

Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa is located just across the lake north of Disney Springs. The resort’s name and design inspiration come from an upstate New York community known for horse racing. All around the resort you’ll find artwork and decor evoking the equestrian arts. The resort has 1,260 rooms available, from the standard 355 square foot studio room to the enormous 2,113 square foot, two-story, three bedroom Grand Villas. For a more hidden-away say, Saratoga Springs also offers 60 three-bedroom Treehouse Villas, elevated 10 feet off the ground and tucked away in the woods near the Sassagoula River.

There are four pools at Saratoga Springs, the main pool being the “High Rock Spring Pool,” complete with a waterslide and poolside bar. Along with that bar, there are two other pool-area bars, two full-service restaurants (The Paddock Grill and Turf Club Grill), and a grab-and-go quick-service option (Artist’s Palette).

BIG FACT: One of the reasons for this resort’s expansive size is the fact that Disney’s Lake Buena Vista Golf Course is interwoven with the property. The 18-hole course has even hosted the PGA Tour and the LPGA Tour!

Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort can be found just south of Epcot, sharing the same area as Disney’s Riviera Resort. The Caribbean Beach Resort has 1,536 rooms, with Standard or Water views. The rooms are 300 square feet and can comfortably fit a family of 4. There is also the option to upgrade to a Pirate Theme room, with pirate ship-shaped beds, skull and crossbones decor, and other nautical-themed accents!

The resort features 2 sit-down restaurants: Spyglass Grill and Sebastian’s Bistro, and a grab-and-go food court (Centertown Market). There is also a full-service poolside bar called the Banana Cabana. Speaking of pools, Disney’s Caribbean beach resort has 6 of them! The main pool, known as “Fuentes del Morro,” has waterfalls, waterslides, and water cannons for the little ones to enjoy!

BIG FACT: At the center of the resort is Barefoot Bay, a 45-acre lake. If you’re looking to burn off those churros, there is a 1.4 mile long jogging trail that goes all the way around Barefoot Bay!

Admittedly, this one is a little bit of a “gimme,” since it’s technically three separate resorts. But all three are in the same location, offer similar rooms and amenities, and are roughly the same size. So it’s better than a three-way tie! Disney’s All-Star Resort consists of All-Star Movies, All-Star Music, and All-Star Sports. Each has 1,920 rooms available. Most rooms are 260 square feet and sleep a family of four. There are a limited number of family suites available that can fit up to 6 guests, with two rooms, one Queen bed, one pull-out sleeper sofa, and a chair-ottoman combo that can convert into single beds.

Each resort is split into five areas with resort-specific theming. At All-Star Movies, you can find a 35-foot tall Buzz Lightyear. All-Star Music has a pair of giant three-story-tall cowboy boots. And at All-Star Sports, there’s a pair of 51-foot tall tennis racquets! Each resort has two pools apiece, again appropriately themed for the resorts. The only dining options you’ll find are of the quick-service food court style: World Premiere Food Court at All-Star Movies, Intermission Food Court at All-Star Music, and The Endzone Food Court at All-Star Sports.

BIG FACT: The All-Star Resort was designed b Miami-based architecture firm Arquitectonica, who have also designed the United Nations Peacekeepers Memorial in New York City, The Longmont Hotel skyscraper in Shanghai, and the Solaria & Aria Towers in Milan, Italy!

It doesn’t get much greater than the great outdoors, does it? Hidden away in a cypress and pine forest southeast of Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground is the largest resort in Walt Disney World! At well over two hundred acres, you could fit two Magic Kingdomsinside! The campground offers 847 campsites that can fit campers or RVs up to 65 feet long. Don’t have a camper or RV? No problem! The resort also has 363 cabins available. 6 people can fit comfortably inside the 504 square foot cabins. Inside the cabins are a bedroom with double and bunk beds, a living area with a pull-out sleeper sofa, and a full kitchen with appliances.

Amenities and recreation are the name of the game at Fort Wilderness. There are two pools at either end of the campground. The main pool (The Meadow Swimmin’ Pool) features a kiddie pool and a waterslide fashioned after an old-timey water tower. While staying at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground, you can go horseback riding, check out the petting zoo, hop on a nighttime hayride, or explore the winding rivers on a kayak. Don’t forget to attend Chip & Dale’s Campfire Sing-A-Long, where you can roast some s’mores and sing along to your favorite Disney songs.

Fort Wilderness has plenty of offerings to get your fixin’s (that’s Southern speak for “food”)! P&J’s Southern Takeout serves quick-service meals that you can take back to your camper or cabin, or enjoy outside on one of the picnic tables. The Meadow Snack Bar offers sandwiches, hot dogs, and pizza near the Meadow Swimmin’ Pool. Crockett’s Tavern is a lounge-style bar with appetizers and cocktails. Or you can eat your fill at the buffet-style eatery at Trail’s End Restaurant.

Finally, combining the Disney magic of song and dance with Southern-style comfort food, the Hoop Dee Do Musical Revue is a dinner show featuring The Pioneer Hall Players. It’s a knee-slappin’ good time that will have you clapping and cheering while you chow down on BBQ, fried chicken, cornbread, and much more.

BIG FACT: The Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue is America’s longest-running musical stage show! To date, the show has run over 35,000 times and entertained over 10 million guests.

Although most people might not equate Disney with outdoor living, there’s no denying the magical Disney touch that is all over Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground. If you want to see and stay at the biggest Disney Resort, then Fort Wilderness is your choice!