As a test, I recently stayed in both with my wife, 25-year-old son and his friend.

Our family, four-time West Coast Disney veterans, is now travelling in adult mode . . . no kids or cots, thank you.
 

My quest to find the best-buck accommodation in one of Disney's 24,800 rooms was not easy. Let's say we're a tough audience. All of us have stayed in a wide range of hotels and motels throughout North America and Europe.

Our group of four tried the cheapest and the most expensive accommodations at Disney World. After much discussion and afterthought, we agreed on the following impressions.

Disney magic

The All-Star Music Resort had the most Disney Magic, with more character rodents than you could shake a stick at. Mickey Mouse was on the carpet, walls, table, lamp, bedspreads, shower curtains and hangers, leaving no doubt you were at THE magic place.

If you are travelling with kids, they will be mesmerized with all the (occasionally) tacky Disney visuals, ignoring what is essentially a basic room.

The blue-bottom guitar and piano-shaped pools, surrounded by three-storey-high sculptures of musical instruments and scattered Disney theme statues are inviting. Big is important here, impressing young, inquisitive eyes.

Happy and courteous Disney staff frequent the pool with games and entertainment for guests. By all accounts, the kids have a hoot in the pool area, with most parents lounging nearby.

The fast-food service is basic, clean and quick. No sit-down table service here. You eat cheap and keep on going. Parking is free in all Disney resorts, a plus. Surprisingly, the parking lot here is closer than that in our upcoming room upgrade. So if you need frequent access to your car, the budget setting is a better choice.

The meticulously groomed green spaces really made us feel like we were staying in the only resort in town.

Transportation to and from the theme parks is prompt and, of course, free.

Total cost for four days in June for two adults and two kids, $484, or $121 a day, attraction passes not included. When booking, don't bother with the optional $54.24 upgrade. All it does is get your car parked closer to your room.

Classy adult escape

Our planned upgrade to Disney's Beach Club Resort in the Epcot area was an eye-opener for all of us on what the nicer things in life are all about, if you can afford it.

Bellmen greeted us, offering to take our luggage and park our car. We felt special here right from the get-go. Our room was upgraded to Club Level concierge, for the purpose of this story, with even more luxuries ahead.

The rooms were quite a contrast to the All Star Music Resort, with noticeably more luxurious furnishings: higher and fluffier beds, yacht-themed wallpaper and double sink bathrooms with polished brass fittings.

Our own private balcony overlooked the pool and beachfront; all hinted we had arrived, but not necessarily at Disney.

There was only a hint of Disney characters on the bed cover and a lonely lampshade in the darkest corner.

The real "adult" treat was the concierge service at the Regatta Club, which included a lounge with self-serve continental breakfast, midday snacks, afternoon tea, evening wine and cheese, and evening cordials and dessert. This more than made up for the lack of a fast-food outlet. Afternoon and evening all-you-can-drink beer, wine and special liqueurs for grown-ups make it a good deal for the $607 upgrade; kids who can only quench their thirst on milk, pop and cookies are not getting their (parents') money's worth.

The beach and pool area are a world away, with real sand on the Crescent Lake beachfront and sandcastle-building in one of the sand-bottom lagoons. Kids were happy here, too, even in the absence of Disney characters to keep them company.

Total cost for four days in June for two adults and two kids, $2,656 or $664 a day, including the additional $607 for club level (free daily treats and drinks and personal concierge service), rear-garden view club level or $989 for front lagoon view. The front view wears off fast, so go for the rear and use your savings on passes. Attraction passes were not included.

The winner

Does the more than five times the cost of the Disney Beach Club Resort give you that much more Disney bang? Not really; in fact, you're getting less. You could lounge around the Beach Club Resort all day and miss out on the rest of Disney World altogether, which for first-time visitors is the point of being there. Two-bedroom suites at the Beach Resort start at more than $1,275 a night. This is definitely an adults-first stay.

We saw happier young faces exploring the oversize visuals anywhere at the All-Star Music Resort. Kids at the Beach Resort only got excited at the pools. My grown-up son and his friend quickly forgot their past youthful Disney visits, in favour of the sophisticated and classy Beach Resort.

I am glad they are on their own.

You should factor in more than just room rates when you stay in the vast Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando. Room rates vary a lot, depending on season and location, starting at $121 for the month of June at the value resorts.

Consider staying at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort where a room for two adults and two children costs $179 a night in June (attraction passes extra).

It is located in the Epcot resort area, and shares the picturesque Crescent Lake along with much more expensive resorts.

Staying by the lake gives you the advantage of using the free water transportation instead of buses to get to the Disney-MGM Studios and Epcot. Long walks along the lake's boardwalk add to the Disney World experience.

If You Go

Samantha Brown of the Travel Channel says the slow economy doesn't seem to be having the kind of impact on Disneyland and Disneyworld that analysts had predicted. She says both parks are packed.

She spoke to us from Disneyworld, where she offered up these money saving tips for consumers:

1. Disney's Port Orleans Resort

You can book a vacation package for a two-night, three-day stay at one of Disney World's moderate resorts. The Port Orleans Resort package includes two nights of lodging and three-day tickets with the park-hopper option for $450.

2. Magical Express

Families don't have to rent a car or collect their bags at the airport when landing in Orlando. Disney's Magical Express is like having the combination of a car service and luggage valet all wrapped up in one. All you have to do is check your bags at the airport, and they are magically waiting for you when you arrive at your Disney hotel. Be sure to request your Magical Express luggage tags when you make your reservations. Don't worry about transportation to the hotel; a bus will pick you up at the airport and take you right there.

3. Disney Value Seasons Looking for a cheap family getaway? You and your family can head to Walt Disney World during the off-season when lines are typically shorter and the weather is more comfortable. The rates are usually lower from January to February; for a few weeks in April and May; mid-August through September; and between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

4. Magic Your Way

Sign up on the Disney World website to receive announcements of special offers. Magic Your Way is a new program that offers visitors options a la carte. You can choose to add what you wish instead of buying a package that might include elements that you don't really want.

5. Three Pricing Categories

Disney offers three pricing categories for hotel accommodations. There are hotels like the Pop Century with rooms for less than $100 a night. Coronado Beach is in the intermediate category with rooms ranging from $100 to $150 a night. Disney also has more exclusive hotels, like the Grand Floridian Hotel, and other high-end accommodations, like extended-stay condominiums with their own kitchens and living rooms.

6. Rider Swap Tickets These tickets allow one parent to ride with his/her child and then, when the ride is over and without having to wait in line again, the other parent can ride with the child using a Rider Swap ticket. Systems in place at Disney World like the Rider Swap program provide ways to get more entertainment in less time, which equals more bang for your buck!

7. Extra Magic Hours

Another great way to maximize your family time at Disney World is to arrive early in the morning before the crowds get larger for better ride experiences. You and your kids will have an opportunity to hop on rides a lot more quickly without having to wait in long lines. It gets even better if you are Disney resort guests. Disney only offers Extra Magic Hours to guests, which allows them to get into parks early or stay late on certain days. Now that's a way to maximize your fun!

8. Park Hopper

For an additional charge per ticket, Park Hopper allows you to visit multiple parks in the same day. The charge is only applied once. The more days you stay, the less it costs per day. A one-time charge for Park Hopper is $45 per ticket.

9. Free Transportation

Disney not only has complimentary transportation to and from the airport, but they also provide transportation between all their resorts and parks. There¿s a whole system of monorails, buses and even boats that can take you from place to place at Disney World. Just riding the monorail is a thrill for kids. You may even be allowed to sit up front with the driver if you ask nicely.

10. Fast Pass

With Fast Pass, you show up at a ride, put your park ticket in the designated Fast Pass machine, and out comes a Fast Pass ticket that tells you to come back at a specific time (for example, 2:30-3:30). The ticket acts as a placeholder, which is great for families who don't want to spend an hour or two waiting in line at a popular attraction. You can only get one Fast Pass ticket every two hours. Popular rides can run out of Fast Passes, so try to get one early.

11. Lower Cost Activities

Another way to save money when vacationing in Disney World is to take advantage of the lower-cost recreational activities. For example, a family of five can book a Magic Your Way package that includes a four-day, three-night stay in a cabin with lots of room at Disney World's Fort Wilderness Campground. By choosing a three-day theme-park admission with the Water Park Fun and More option, the family can enjoy five days of fun for slightly more than the cost of three. So check for the special deals and packages for extra savings.

12. Free Admission

Still pinching pennies and need to know how to save more money at Disney World? There are all kinds of things to do at Downtown Disney that don't require a park ticket. When staying at one of the Disney resorts, you and your kids can head to Design Quest and experience a digital nirvana, free of charge. On a hot Florida day, Disney World's water parks, such as Typhoon Lagoon, can be just the ticket to keep the kids cool. A ticket here costs about half of what a theme-park ticket costs. That's great news for a family on a budget.

13. Hotel Pools

The water parks cost less than the theme parks, but the pool at your hotel is free. Of course, your kids would probably love the super-mega-crazy slides at the water parks, but they might be just as happy playing Marco Polo near your hotel room.

14. Disney Dining Plan

Another big-ticket item when traveling is food. Families can take advantage of some of the counter-service buffets that are generally all-you-can-eat. If you're really into food and you're a big eater, then definitely go with the Disney Dining Plan. A family of four can save up to 30 percent on this plan. If you do their specific meal plan, you can save a lot of money.

15. Budget for Children It's recommended to give older children a budget for the length of the vacation, saying, "You have 'x' amount of money, so spend it wisely." Not only will it keep your budget in check, but it's also a great lesson for them on how to spend their time and money wisely.

16. Room Key Purchases

Another nice perk that comes with staying on Disney property is that you can use your room key to buy things and then have your purchases delivered to your hotel. You can go all around the resort and use the key. No credit card. No ID. It's less to carry, less to think about and really convenient.

17. Photo Pass

The Disney-licensed charm bracelet sets "Disney Fairies," "High School Musical" and "Hannah Montana," which were bought at Barnes & Noble (BKS.N), had between three and eight times the federally permitted levels of lead in the bracelets' coating, according to an independent laboratory commissioned by the group.

Federal law forbids paint to be used in children's products if it has more than 600 parts per million of lead.

Barnes & Noble asked its stores to remove the product from shelves until they can be proved safe, said spokeswoman Mary Ellen Keating.

"We have already pulled the product from the web site," said Keating.

A charm for young children called "Charm It!", which was purchased at a toy store, also had high lead levels, with one testing at more than 150 times the California state standard, said the California-based group.

The jewelry was made by the privately held High IntenCity Corp of New Jersey, the group said.

As our instructors told us how to get on and how to get off, how to speed up and how to slow down and so many other crucial things, I could detect the work of people in suits at a firm somewhere that probably had an ampersand in its name.

After all, when you're Disney, you want to make sure you cover all your bases when it comes to liability.

Well, fair enough. Finally, we finished up, and led by a genial woman named Carole, we headed out into Epcot for a leisurely and decidedly untaxing tour around the World Showcase, the park's collection of small scale model representations of some of the famous buildings, stores, towers and so forth from countries like France, Japan, China, Italy, Morocco, and others.

Truthfully, the tour wasn't that informative. We got maybe 30 seconds of information about each of the countries we stopped in and then we moved quickly on. I think the real point was to give us enough fodder to make us want to return later when we were on our feet.

We were instructed, by the way, not to carry anything in our hands while we rode the Segways. But what is a reporter to do? So I tried to surreptitiously carry my Nokia smart phone in my hand so I could shoot Qik video (see below) of the ride. I only got caught once.

Riding the Segways was one of the suggestions I got from readers when I asked last week what I should do at Disney World when I visited as part of Road Trip 2008, my journey around the South. And I have to say, it was a great idea. I love Segways, first of all, and secondly, how great is it to glide around effortlessly on a hot day when everyone else is working up a sweat just strolling from point A to point B.

After we returned to our starting point--no Epcot patrons were harmed in this experiment--I was met by a member of Disney World's public relations team who kindly escorted me to a van stashed conveniently nearby in staff parking, and we set off for Disney's Hollywood Studios for a whirlwind tour of the not new ride there, "Toy Story Mania."

The ride, which opened last month at Disney World and is set to open later this month at Disneyland, is a super fast-paced cacophony of an adventure based on the story line from Pixar's Toy Story films.

The idea is that you find yourself plopped down into a huge model of the little boy's room from the films and are tasked with battling a whole series of different nemeses.

So you hop into a small car, which races off into a tunnel--very Disney-esque, of course--and one by one, you have to shoot at these villains, who appear on a screen on the wall in front of you.

Being a modern ride, this attraction is full of little tricks. For example, what you see on the screen is in 3D, so you have to wear 3D glasses to see the targets properly. Also, you are firing at them with a gun mounted on your car, and you are shooting digital bullets at them which splat satisfyingly on the screen. Well, at least they seem to. They're digital, after all.

For me, the trick was both to enjoy the ride and to try to take pictures and shoot video. At first, I couldn't figure out why the pictures were coming out fuzzy, but then I realized it was the fact that the camera had no idea what to do with the 3D images.

Until I put the glasses in front of the lens, that is. Both for my camera, and then for the Nokia phone.

As you fire away, you accumulate points as you hit targets. As I understand it, the ride offers up a lot of "Easter eggs," or hidden surprises. But I was too wrapped up in trying to document it to shoot much. I ended up with a rather pathetic score, especially when measured against the impressive total racked up by my escort.

We had taken a back entrance into the ride so that we didn't have to wait in the extremely long line, but after finishing we went back into the main area so that we could see some of the cool details the designers had added.

They included a large set of dominoes and a huge View-Master reel hanging from the ceiling, as well as a giant Tinker-Toy structure that all the cars have to drive through.

There were also little details that only the careful eye would catch, such as some child's books painted on the wall, the author of one of which was named Lasseter. For the Pixar fans among us, that's an obvious reference to Toy Story director and current Disney Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter.

Afterward, we got back in my escort's van and zipped back over to Epcot. I still wanted a chance to go on two more of the popular rides there: "Test Track" and "Soarin'." And I figured why wait in hour-plus lines for them if I could take advantage of the secret entrances my escort could lead me to.

Sure enough, we wandered straight to the front of the "Test Track" line. This is a pretty cool ride that puts guests in the front seat of a car that is then rushed through Disney scale representations of 10 different tests that General Motors cars go through before they can hit the road.

These included going uphill fast, braking without and then with antilock brakes, accelerating (up to 65 miles an hour) on a straight-away, going over some rough road and going slowly through both a very hot and a very cold room.

Fun stuff, actually, and another attraction you, my beloved readers, had suggested I try.

Unfortunately, though, we couldn't work out a way to expedite entry to "Soarin'," so I decided to try my luck at getting one of Disney World's FastPasses--which allow you to get a ticket guaranteeing quick entry much later in the day--for the ride.

Sure enough, I was one of the very last people to get one of the tickets, but my time wasn't for about six hours. So I went back to my hotel, did some work, and then finally returned, right on time.

"Soarin'" is actually pretty sweet: it puts you in the seat of what is meant to be something along the lines of a hang-glider and then whisks you, with your seat seeming to rush into the wind, diving or climbing with what you see on screen, up, down and over things like the Golden Gate Bridge, a ski slope, a Napa vineyard, the ocean, a river, a desert, and more.

It was pretty exhilarating. In parts, at least. The realistic effects of the seats rocking back and forth definitely helped, as did the huge screen and the larger-than life video on it.

Finished with "Soarin'," my day was pretty much over. A long day, to be sure, but one with plenty of thrills.

Its breakthrough episode? When Cyrus, 15, and backup dancer Mandy Jiroux, 21, mocked rival Disney stars Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato, who host their own YouTube show, The Real Demi Lovato.

"Parts of the Miley show were funny, but it was kind of mean," says Marisa Vanicky, 14, of Bridgewater, N.J., who subscribes to several stars' YouTube channels. "I think Miley doesn't like them, but she has to pretend she does."

Both shows, or vlogs (short for video logs), are part of a teen-star trend to bypass overprotective parent companies — in this case Disney — and connect with fans through online video portals.

Other stars who have their own YouTube channels include the Jonas Brothers, actress Allyson Stoner and Miranda Cosgrave of Nickelodeon's I Carly. But Disney celebs dominate the genre, a mix of seemingly home-made promos and slice-of-life clowning.

Is it a defiant attempt by the teens to be their own image-makers? Or a savvy marketing campaign to use spontaneous footage — with its potential to embarrass or offend — to foster an illusion of intimacy with the stars?

Maybe both.

"To do non-Disney shows, these stars have to get approval, but YouTube has somehow slipped through the cracks. Anyone can do it," says Molly MacDermot, editor of M, a fan magazine for tweens and young teens. "They like this control they've got, where they can do their own thing."

Kathleen Sweeney, a communications professor at Marymount Manhattan College, says Disney and other companies encourage the self-made footage, knowing they can benefit from the buzz among fans but distance themselves from any bad behavior.

"Sure, you could upload this stuff drunk at midnight when your publicist isn't with you. But these kids are so media oriented, I'm sure they're checking in with their people," said Sweeney, author of the book Maiden the USA: Girl Icons Come of Age.

"Disney has given them the nod because it generates viewers and makes kids feel like they're part of the stars' personal life," she said. "If something goes wrong, it's like with Miley Cyrus and the Vanity Fair cover, they're able to say, 'Oh, it's not our fault' and back out of any responsibility."

The Disney Channel declined to comment on the phenomenon, but spokeswoman Patti McTeague wrote via e-mail: "In general, the Disney Channel sets a high expectation for professionalism when young talent are working on our series and movies."

One draw of the YouTube shows is that they're open to interpretation. When the Jonas Brothers quipped, "My, how the tables have turned" in one short video, M magazine searched for meaning.

Was it a message to Cyrus about the band's soaring popularity, after months of serving as her opening act?

Like a high school feud gone viral, the Miley and Mandy parody, entitled "Is My Make-up too Dark?," also invited commentary, with viewers debating whether the duo's intentions were playful or malicious.

Since it was posted two months ago, the webisode — which spoofed Wizard of Waverly Place star Gomez modeling a Power Rangers T-shirt, and Lovato asking fans about her eye shadow — has gleaned more than 2 million views. Fans posted nearly 50,000 comments, both for and against the spoof.

Hundreds even made parodies of the parody.

But Cyrus scored a YouTube victory last month, when the Miley and Mandy dance crew performed a hip-hop routine to the Madonna hit Four Minutes to Save the World.

It showed a side of Cyrus that viewers aren't likely to see on the Disney Channel, and it even impressed Vanicky, who isn't a Cyrus fan.

"I actually liked it," she said. "I was surprised at how much work they put into it."

Disney acquired the online virtual game 10 months ago from Canadian company New Horizon Interactive and expects Club Penguin's popularity in Australia will continue to surge.

User numbers on Disney.com.au had already doubled to 800,000 after traditional online games, based on Disney animated movies and characters, were added to the site late last year.

In virtual worlds, gamers interact with other subscribers in computer-simulated environments.

They get to manipulate elements of the game instead of following predetermined scenarios as in traditional computer games.

Duncan Orrell-Jones, head of the Walt Disney Internet Group for Asia Pacific, said Club Penguin was not yet linked to the Disney gaming site in Australia.

But that has not deterred users from joining the fun.

"One of the reasons why we're very excited about the opportunity here is that there is already a pretty sizeable audience of people from Australia going to Club Penguin," Mr Orrell-Jones said.

"If you look around the world, Australia ranks way up there in terms of our brand appeal - it's sort of neck and neck with the US."

Disney would be hiring a team by August to manage its Club Penguin operations in Sydney, Mr Orrell-Jones said.

"In addition to that, we're talking about how we're going to bring out a series of similar products over the coming years," he said.

A second virtual world is set to be launched next year and will be based on Disney Fairies, the franchise built around the famous animated character Tinker Bell.

In 2010, Disney has plans to launch a third virtual experience based on the hit Pixar movie Cars.

"Gaming is a very important aspect of our audience's experience online and in Australia the game activity online is quite strong," Mr Orrell-Jones said.