Also, as for accommodations: Don't spend too much time worrying about it, because you really won't have a choice. Returning families get right of first refusal for their same lodging / same week. Only so many spots open each year, and they'll call and tell you what's available. If the week & price work, take it.

The Inn is convenient, we stayed there in the same suite all our years, but nothing is more than a few minutes walk (or bike ride)

I'm not sporty, and I'm only moderately social and we spent 9 wonderful summers at the Tyler Place. We've also been to WDW / Universal several times and and on a bunch of cruises but it's the Tyler Place vacations that my kids still talk about all the time. When my kids were your kids ages we went in early June, when they were older and couldn't miss school we went mid August. June was MUCH cheaper, but the August weather allowed us to make use of the lake.

As a stay at home mom, the Tyler Place was the only true vacation I took when my kids were young. 98% of the kids LOVE group and go eagerly, allowing you to relax guilt-free.

Hope that helped.

Three and five is probably the perfect age for Disney World.

Chiming in with 3 observations re: Tyler Place...
1) Book now, the 2012 season was completely booked up before the summer even started
2) The required week (the minimum in summer) at Tyler Place for 2 adults and 2 kids is a minimum of $4522, more depending on your accomodations. Club Med is offering a cheaper deal on Family Getaway right now, just sayin'.
3) We took our kids ages 3 and 5 to Walt Disney World (not all the other parks) for one day in spring and they were in hog heaven. Their faces riding the train around after their dinner at Cinderella's castle was the picture of preschool contentment. There were only a few of the bigger, scarier rides that we did not go on. The temps for spring break were chilly everywhere north of Florida - and we spent the rest of spring break at the beach, so it wasn't at all an Orlando death march.

PP here -- maybe I'm just anti-social enough that I had no idea people were hanging out in cliques at cocktail parties (very possible!). There are definitely people who go every year and know each other well and hang out. But there are plenty of other people who wander around and go to yoga, go biking, just hang by the pool, etc. I have skipped many of the cocktail parties and my husband and I ate many meals by ourselves, since we did want to spend some time together.
In terms of where to stay, you do want to be in the Inn or close to it when your kids are small. You have to go to "group" twice a day, so you don't want to be shuttling them around. Our kids all bike themselves now so we can really stay anywhere, but we liked the Inn when they were little.

Why don't you try a cruise? Kids can enjoy kids club, you and DH can have some down time. There are cruises that leave from NYC or Baltimore, so you could spare yourself the long dive to Vermont.

I would chime in that Tyler Place is amazing especially the food--but there is a forced socialization :cocktail parties, champaign cruises. I ran into several of the mean girls I went high school with from down in DC when I was up there--it was weird. As far as I can tell, all of AU Park , Spring Valley, Potomac/Bethesda and Great Falls/McLean scrambles up to this tiny corner of Vermont every summer trying to escape DC--and they just bring all their DC bullshit with them. It was amazing how many people came directly from our neighborhood. Chilling really.

OP here. Thanks so much for your reply. Tyler Place just sounds amazing. Glad to hear that non-stop adult mingling and interest in sports aren't obligatory. One more question, any recommendations for lodging there? I'm thinking near the Inn/Kids' Clubs might make sense, as our preschoolers might melt down if expected to trek far to activities every day.

We've been to Tyler Place many times. There is no requirement to be social and you can absolutely eat with your spouse every meal. People are friendly but not in-your-face about it. We aren't super-social at all and enjoy it every year.
There are plenty of non-sporty things to do. One year I was pregnant and couldn't do too much, so I took advantage of just relaxing with some books, walking around the lake, taking some of the crafty-classes (watercolors, pottery, etc.). ou really can do whatever you want. We just find it very relaxing because everyone can do their own thing, and you don't really need to plan anything. Disney scares me.

My husband has been pushing for us to take our two kids to Disney World next spring or summer. They'll be 5 and 3 and the whole endeavor seems exhausting. I know we'll take them sometime, but..... Then I came across reviews of Tyler Place in VT and the outdoorsy nature of the place sounds appealing, especially in contrast to Orlando. I'm currently staying home with the kids and get a good deal of quality time with them, so the fact that kids spend much of the day at camp at Tyler Place isn't a deal breaker for me. However, I do have a few reservations about the resort (camp?). I have to admit that much expected socializing with the other parents doesn't seem so appealing. Is it frowned upon to skip the cocktail hour or eat separately with your spouse at times? Secondly, while my husband is athletic and loves sports, I'm not and don't. It seems like most of the adult activities are sports-related. I would be happy to go on some long runs and bike rides, not so into doing the sailing, ropes course, tennis, etc. Does that mean we'd be better off heading elsewhere for our family vacation? Sorry for the long post, but would appreciate any insight as to whether Tyler Place would make sense for us. Thanks!