Worst Disney World Hotels for 2023
Need help choosing where to stay while planning your 2023 Walt Disney World vacations? How about we start by narrowing down which accommodations NOT to book, with a rundown of the worst 5 resorts for 2023, including a few hotels that we normally love–and one big time fan favorite!
What makes this list of the worst 5 hotels at Walt Disney World in 2023 different from any other time? Each of these resorts makes the list for a specific reason unique to 2023. In most cases, that’s either due to the impact of construction…or the lack thereof. (With that latter meaning that a couple of these hotels are looking worse for wear and are overdue for refurbishments.)
In a couple of cases, we’re also taking into account recent reader feedback, which has soured on some resorts at Walt Disney World more than others. (Across the board, complaints are on the rise, but with higher prices comes higher expectations.) In other cases, we’re proactively anticipating a rise in complaints come 2023, as past precedent is the best predictor of future performance, or guest (dis)satisfaction, as the case may be.
If you’re simply looking for how we rank the resorts at Walt Disney World without any special consideration for 2023, here are our individual ranking lists, all of which are current:
- Value Resort Rankings
- Moderate Resort Rankings
- Deluxe Resort Rankings
- Deluxe Villa/DVC Resort Rankings
With that said, let’s dig into this list of the top 5 resorts at Walt Disney World for 2023…
All Star Resorts
We’ve done 3 stays at the All Star Resorts this year, and honestly, they look better than they have in years. It seems like the common areas and oversized icons got a refresh during the closure, and are really popping. This is especially true at All Star Sports, which had been showing its age for a while and now looks nice and bright. (It’s still not perfect…I spotted a Montreal Expos pennant, among other dated details!)
On top of that, the room overhauls are now finished at both All Star Music and Movies. By early 2023, the same should be true of the rooms at All Star Sports. We’ve stayed in these new rooms, which you can read about in Photos & Video: Newly Reimagined Rooms at the All Star Resorts. This is a huge upgrade from the previous design, which was more minor leagues than all-star caliber. Suffice to say, we’re fans.
On top of that, discounts through Spring 2023 put the All Star Resorts nightly room rates at under $100 during the off-season, and not much worse than that during normal dates. This is on par with real world hotels in Central Florida, and not too shabby considering the included transportation, Early Entry, and other perks.
So…what gives? Well, as you’ll find out in reading the rest of this list, “worst” is really a relative term. One of the things we also experienced during those stays was the All Stars hosting a youth sporting event at ESPN Wide World of Sports during dates I was pretty sure nothing was on the schedule. That was a rude reminder of how those can negatively impact the experience at the All Stars, and our expectation is that these will occur with increasing regularity as things continue getting back to normal.
Beyond that, we think it’s really worth paying the premium to upgrade to Pop Century unless you’re on an incredibly tight budget. That resort is really firing on all cylinders and the Skyliner continues to be a game-changer (especially for Early Entry). We’re not trying to scare you away from the All Stars, as the vast majority of guests will have a good experience there, but we feel it’s worth the extra money to improve your overall comfort and efficiency, even if that ends up being your one splurge for the trip.
Caribbean Beach Resort
As mentioned in Best Resorts at Walt Disney World for 2023, Coronado Springs has replaced Caribbean Beach as our go-to Moderate Resort, with Pop Century (and to a lesser extent, Art of Animation) supplanting it for Skyliner purposes.
That’s largely driven by the aging rooms. While we dubbed the resort “Poly-lite” several years ago when the current rooms debuted, other room updates have since passed them. By comparison, the Caribbean Beach rooms are looking dreary, dated, and worse for wear. They really could use a refresh, both aesthetically and with better space-saving design features.
Our expectation is that exactly this will happen in 2023. While Walt Disney World has only announced plans for the Pirate Rooms, it seems like an inevitability that a makeover to the regular rooms will also occur. Between the dated rooms and potential construction impact to address the dated rooms, we’d simply recommend staying elsewhere. None of these are major problems that make this a strong warning or anything of that sort–it’s just the Moderate Resort we’re least inclined to book for now.
Polynesian Village Resort
I can already feel the hate mail about to be written. No one is as passionate about their favorite resort as Poly fans, and arguably no Walt Disney World hotel has as many fans at the Poly. And for good reason. It currently ranks #3 and #1 on our Deluxe Resort and DVC Rankings, respectively.
The point is that we are far from Poly haters and we’re also not saying this to rile up the hardcore fans of this beloved hotel. Quite the contrary. When the Polynesian is firing on all cylinders–as it has been for the last year–it’s almost impossible to beat. The rooms, range of dining options, and that exceptional island atmosphere all get you into “vacation mode” like no other resort at Walt Disney World.
However, we’ve also experienced the Poly when it was a veritable construction zone (more than once), and it’s absolutely not the same. We stayed at the Polynesian roughly a decade ago while the lobby and pool were being redone, longhouses were being converted to DVC, and the bungalows were being built. It was a sea of construction walls–a lot like the front of EPCOT is right now.
During that time, the vibe at the Poly was anything but relaxed and the atmosphere wasn’t even close to the same. (Honestly, Disney should’ve closed the resort given the scope and scale of that work–it wasn’t ‘show ready’ for guests, let alone worthy of Deluxe pricing.)
Without question, construction of the new tower at the Polynesian will be different. Rather than being in the middle of the resort, it’s on the periphery. That work won’t be visible or audible from most guest rooms. However, there’s nothing to say that’s the only construction that’ll occur at the Polynesian in 2023. The resort infrastructure will need to accommodate hundreds of additional rooms, and it’s likely other modernizations will occur to the existing buildings to help them blend together better (which is what we saw at Coronado Springs when Gran Destino Tower was built, and what’s currently occurring at Disneyland Hotel).
I’m not suggesting that the Poly will be unpleasant in 2023. Personally, I’d be inclined to roll the dice if it were $300 per night and themed to the clamoring crescendo of construction noise and workers. But it’s themed to island serenity and costs $650 per night and up. It’s also the only resort that has been excluded from all Winter & Spring 2023 discounts thus far. Given all of that, it is simply not worth the gamble. Save your stay for later in 2024, and move next door if you really want to splurge in 2023.
BoardWalk Inn & Villas
It’s almost the exact same story with Disney’s BoardWalk Inn and Villas, which will be reimagined over the next couple years. Compounding matters is that we don’t really know the scale or scope of the project, nor do we have a timeline as to when it’ll start or when various areas of the resort will be impacted.
At this point, all we know is that Walt Disney World is adding and changing elements along the turn-of-the-century promenade, with new and reimagined restaurant concepts. Inside, the Deluxe Resort will get a new lobby design, nearby coffee bar, delectable dining options, refreshed guest rooms, and more. That leaves a lot of latitude for the impact to guests. Those new features could be as simple as the “reimagined” BoardWalk Deli (basically the same thing as before, but with a new sign and menu) or be total overhauls that last for several months or longer.
When you add to that uncertainty the reality that the rooms at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn–and especially the DVC villas–are really starting to show their age, it earns an easy ‘avoid’ designation. While the reimagining could be a total non-issue for the overwhelming majority of guests staying at BoardWalk in 2023, we’d rather err on the side of caution and book elsewhere.
Bay Lake Tower
This made the ‘best of’ list as a wildcard for the second half of the year, and that more or less ran down why Bay Lake Tower should be avoided until then. The rooms were poorly constructed from the outset, and Disney’s band aid approach to fixing them over the years is very apparent. (It’s still possible to get one that’s in nice condition, but that’s simply a matter of luck.)
Honestly, I was inclined to include the entirety of Disney’s Contemporary Resort in this, but there’s no reason to believe its status is unique to 2023. The Incredibles IP injection appears complete…and yet, the Grand Canyon Concourse was never touched?! Between that 90s hodgepodge and mediocre new rooms, Contemporary continues to fall in our rankings. It hasn’t helped that Gran Destino and Riviera show how tower resorts can really shine at Walt Disney World.
Ultimately, there are a lot of great accommodations options for 2023 Walt Disney World vacations. There are tons of recently-redone resorts and room reimaginings, most of which are significantly better than the old rooms (anything pre-2018). This is great for guests, and makes it easier to be picky about where you stay.
The bad news is that price increases make every resort option much more expensive than they were back then, so you should be picky about where you’re paying a premium to stay. In our view, these resorts just aren’t up to snuff and won’t offer a guest experience commensurate with the cost due to construction or datedness. (Excluding the All Stars from that, which we simply would avoid due to transportation and team events.) Our hope is that this list of accommodations helps you narrow down where you want to stay when planning your 2023 trip to Walt Disney World.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Which resort(s) will you be avoiding during 2023 at Walt Disney World? Think we’ve making too much of the construction at the Poly or BoardWalk? What about room conditions at Bay Lake Tower and Caribbean Beach? Any hotel on our list that you would or would not recommend? Any other resorts we snubbed? Do you agree or disagree with our choices? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
I think you’re spot on here! I was afraid it would be something really bad! Thank you for sharing!
I would rank “worst” by Disney standards (which are still better than most, mind you):
1. All-Star Sports
2. Art of Animation (people may disagree but the rooms feel so rickety compared to Pop Century)
3.) Caribbean Beach Resort (this hurts because it has long been my favorite moderate)
4.) Boardwalk Villas (but you still can’t beat the location) – We’d opt for Beach Club! 🙂
5.) Old Key West
I can’t comment on Poly or Contemporary rooms because they are the only ones we haven’t stayed at, although we love the resorts when we visit.
Again, that being said, they are all still amazing in their own way, and we are so grateful to have beautiful memories. You really can’t go THAT wrong!
Having stayed at Boardwalk this summer, I’m surprised this one isn’t consistently ranked lower. The rooms we were in were dated and very small. We used the 2-bedroom a lot with a big group of people and there wasn’t nearly the space as BLT which we stayed at the first half of our week. A good example of datedness is the thermostats – not only was it so old that it wasn’t digital, but it didn’t even have degree settings, just more of a ‘this side is warmer and this side is colder, figure it out for yourself what you want.’ The common areas are ok and the location can’t be beat, but if you don’t need the location, stay somewhere else. Add in construction outside and it’s now just a basic hotel within walking distance to two parks.
We had a split stay when we visited in October because I added a few days after we’d already rented points for a stay at Bay Lake Tower. So, we started at All Star Music (preferred room) for three nights before moving to BLT. We chose BLT because it was in walking distance to Magic Kingdom, which was a big draw. However, we ended up wishing we’d just stayed at ASM the entire trip. Bay Lake was a one-and-done visit for us. Never again. It was horrible.
All I kept saying while there was, “The eighties called. It wants its hotel back.” Between the Magic Band+ and the Disney app on the phone, a USB port for recharging electronics isn’t a convenience; it’s a necessity. But there weren’t any in our room. Not one. We had about eight at All Star Music. The cast members were a little rude when we asked how we could charge our electronics. We were told a USB lamp would be sent to our room. Mousekeeping came to our room (with nothing in hand) and said they had no idea what we were talking about.
The room is small. It’s supposed to be bigger than the room we had at All Star Music, but it sure didn’t seem like it. And there’s no quick service restaurant in BLT. You have to go over to the Contemporary, which means an elevator to the Sky walk then the walk over to the Contemporary. It doesn’t sound bad, but if you’re only needing to refill your mug, it’s a hassle, especially if you’re already tired from walking the parks all day.
If Disney had offered to let us trade our BLT room for a room at the ASM, we would have traded in a heartbeat. When you consider the difference in price between the BLT and any of the All Star resorts, BLT just isn’t worth the cost unless you’re only going to Magic Kingdom and no other park and the ability to walk there is more important than cost. It’s not to say ASM is our favorite resort, but it’s definitely a better deal than BLT, all things considered.
I stayed at Boardwalk three weeks ago and at the bungalows at the Polynesian this past July. I think that your assessment of both is totally off the mark. A friend of my daughter’s is currently at All Star Music and is having a blast. He said that there have been many upgrades.
The problem with lists like these is that people tend to believe that they are fact, instead of one man’s opinion.
I was disappointed by my October 2022 stay at Yacht Club because of their new dog pilot program. We were woken up every night (as late as 1 AM) and every morning (6 AM) by barking dogs. I called the front desk on the second night because we just couldn’t sleep. We had no idea that dogs were allowed! We had booked by phone and no one mentioned the program. My brother ended up finding a small listing about the dog program, but it’s not mentioned with the hotel amenities. We ended up being moved after the third night (and finding bags of poop on our terrace!). I’d rather have stayed at Pop Century!
We just stayed at CB and had no complaints about our rooms in terms of wear and tear, mold, or other obvious issues. We even had room for scooters in two of the rooms (the third room would have accommodated one had we needed a third). I thought the whole resort was much nicer than Coronado Springs in 2016, especially since we had easy access to a nearly private pool with no kiddie accoutrement from our rooms. But I do see how compared to the newly updated rooms in other resorts the rooms at CB look dated.
Montreal Expo shirts and hats are still proudly worn in Canada! I think it’s a great way to remember a team especially for the Canadian visitors. I’m sure that when we first visited Disneyworld in the seventies that my dad wore his Expo shirt around the park and now that he is gone, I still have that memory so if I saw the pennant it would remind me of that, and to me, family memories are a huge part of why we keep going back decades later after many family members have passed away.
Speaking of Canadian relics, I always ask the College Program kids working at the Canada pavilion where the memorial shrine to Gordie Downie is…
My high school senior picked Bay Lake Tower to stay at for his graduation trip in June 2023. I convinced him we should stay at Boulder Ridge at Wilderness Lodge instead. While I’ll miss the extra bathroom in a 2 bedroom (there’s 7 of us going) I will not miss the possible wear and tear and the sofa beds at all. Grandma is coming too and she doesn’t frequent the parks near as much as we do. Wilderness Lodge is a better place for her to hang out too.
Having stayed at both, WL is far, far better! Best resort on property (or off) although I have yet to try the bungalows at the Poly…
Couldn’t agree more on All-Stars : they are such a great way to stay on-site if on budget (or by choice of course) but easily feel overcrowded with not the best crowds…
With that being said, being from Montreal and a Expos fan, please let them keep their spirit alive
I’m not hating on the Expos! I still think you all were robbed in ’94, and maybe things would’ve gone differently for the franchise had that season played out…
This is not at WDW obviously, but the message is the same: for anyone going to Disneyland Resort, the DVC villas at the Grand Californian are in need of just as much of an update as some of the resorts listed in the article.
Oh no! Trying a DVC villa at the GC next September… kinda apprehensive now. Had high expectations!
Did they get rid of the 3″ tall gap under the doors at A.S.S that not only lets plenty of mosquitoes, mice and such in but massive noise from the less-classy denizens of this ‘resort’? That resort is my ‘never again’ resort, possibly falling after a park bench for quality and certainly not paying more than a hundred dollars for what is barely a Motel 6 room (which I also will not stay at unless that is the only option). None of the room refreshes over the recent years are really great and yes, they sure are bland!
Currently typing this from the table in a new room at A.S.S. and I see no such gap under the door. Resort is actually pretty quiet, especially as compared to how the first couple of weeks of December used to be at the All Stars.
Well that’s good news. I hope they fixed them all. The building I stayed in was about the farthest away from the lobby/market as you can get, past the smaller pool. Definitely by far the worst experience I’ve had in any WDW resort.
Are there any of the large school or event groups there now? That always makes it ten times worse! I think with the refurbished rooms and if you can hit it just right when none of those large groups are there it might be okay with just the seemingly ever-present unruly stomping screaming kids running along the walkways to bother your stay. Yeah, the food court was terrible on that stay as well.
This is a great list. This is really spot on! Disney minds think alike ☺️
I will be staying at Boardwalk Inn in two months. That’s because it’s within walking distance of Epcot and easy Skyliner access to Hollywood Studios. No dated furnishings or construction can sway me, because I need this location. I learned on my last trip that I cannot make it through to any evening extravaganza without a mid-day lie down, and I hate wasting time waiting on transportation. The other options in the area are too expensive for me.
Swan & Dolphin almost exact distance. You can walk or take the boats which is even easier and less walking vs walk to the Skyliner. Boardwalk is double the price of Swan & Dolphin. Just a consideration for you next time to save you some dough.
Pop Century also more or less checks those same boxes if you want a resort with “Disney” in the name—and is also a lot cheaper.
No Enchanted Evening Hours and way less resort amenities. You can also use credit card points to book your stay and earn points. 2 queen beds with passholder discount is $163 in February when this lady is going. I won’t stay anywhere else.
Thank you so much for putting together this list. I am very relieved to see that Art of Animation is not on it! We had previously booked Caribbean Beach for our March 2023 trip, but decided to cancel after reading too many online horror stories about the condition of the rooms. A repeated complaint was of AC units leaking onto carpet and causing mold. Even Disney’s own photos make the rooms look dated and dreary. We didn’t want to give up Skyliner access, though, and having stayed at Pop Century in 2018 (pre-skyliner, post room-refurb), we knew it would be too small for the four of us. So we have now booked a Cars Family Suite in AOA with the Chase Disney Visa card discount you reported about (THANK YOU–I would not have found the discount otherwise), which has saved us almost $1000 over a week’s stay. I know that our growing boys will appreciate the extra space and that we will love the speed and flexibility of the skyliner. Thank you again for all your efforts to provide readers with the best possible Disney experience!
Where can you read people’s reactions to the rooms in different hotels? Thank you
I check a few different places, like trip advisor, Disney discussion boards, and of course google reviews. I take everything with a grain of salt, since people can be so picky, but the criticisms are fairly uniform when it comes to CB.
I’ve also heard the skyliner can be very noisy, if you happen to have a room right under it. Pop and AOA do not have the gondolas flying directly overhead. I have no personal experience with this, though.
I stayed at Caribbean Beach last year during the second week in December and I was amazed how bad the rooms were in need of refurbishment. I think they release pictures yesterday of the new refurbished rooms at CB.
Um…Excuse me, sir… there’s nothing wrong with a Montreal Expos pennant! That’s all I have to say about that 😉
The Poly is the hotel I love to romanticize the most, but, in reality, staying there feels to me like I’m in WDW’s unofficial 5th gate. The lobby and beach are completely overrun by the noise and traffic of day visitors watching the fireworks or waiting for ‘Ohana and Trade Sam’s tables. We had a room overlooking the marina last time, and it was noisy day and night.I love the location and theming, but it does not feel like the serene sanctuary it set out to be. For $650 a night, there are far better experiences to be had.
Hello, I totally agree. The poly used to be our go to stay. But it was feeling like grand central station compared to when we tried Saratoga springs and the Grand Floridian. When we go to have meals now at the poly and see all the commotion we are glad we stopped staying there. Don’t get me wrong, some people like the hustle and bustle. We just like a calmer atmosphere. P
We stayed at the Contemporary this past October. We were in a newly renovated garden wing king room. We thought the room was great and thoroughly enjoyed our stay. Lunch at Steakhouse 71 on our rest day and California Grill on our last night.
Phew, headed to contemporary tomorrow
It’s nuts that Bay Lake Tower, supposedly themed to modern styles and tech, has TVs I had in college in 2007 and unusable Wi-Fi.