Can you tour the resorts without difficulty?

[Goofy_Disney_Dad]

My wife and I are going to Disney in October. This will be my 4th time and her 1st. I've never stayed on property and she's never been, so I'd like to take a day and visit some of the resorts to check them out for future vacations. We aren't staying on property this time but I really think we'd prefer it in the future.

Is it possible to take a day that we have no plans for the parks (or tickets to the parks) and visit some of the resorts to check them out? Is this easier said than done if it's possible at all?

Wasn't sure where to post this but this section seemed the most appropriate.

Thanks for any help all of you can give me.

 

[WishesOnMyMind]

Visiting other resorts is one of my favorite things to do at WDW! We always make time to go to at least two resorts and have a look around. We ask if there is a room available to look at, and if one is available we get a tour. I like doing this because it's so much easier for me to imagine my family staying in the room at a future date if I can actually stand in the room, rather than looking at pics on the internet. Have fun!

 

[beccab]

I'm sure they are trained to be accommodating to inquiries. Whatever they have to do to "hook" future visitors is $$ in their pocket. It's a great marketing tool. I'm hooked. I won't go to WDW unless I stay onsite.

 

[winterman]

FYI, if you drive in to the resort, the guard will ask for an ID. They just look at it, don't write anything down.

 

[BabyFu18]

I always set aside a day to visit other hotels and see if I'd be interested in stayed there, but I will say when I tried to go and visit rooms at other hotels this summer (July) I was told their was no available or no one to show me around at 3 of the 4 hotels I visited. I understand I went during the summer which is a very busy time, so it's not a big deal, I still walked around the resort to see the dining facilities, pools, shops, grounds, etc. and to take pictures.

Just be warned, if you are there at a high volume time you may not be able to tour a room, but touring the resorts grounds is still a great thing to do and so much fun!

 

[Disneyforus]

We did the very thing last year at Thanksgiving, on a rainy day. Our kids enjoyed doing the scavenger hunts that you can pick up at the concierge desk....and loved the leighs(sp?) from the Poly.

Now we know which resorts we might like to try in the future.

 

[CoolDisneyCat]

Some of the best restaurants at WDW are at the resorts. You might plan a nice meal and time to explore, also.

If you are parking your car, some places may give you a 3 hour parking pass.

 

[LittleBB]

One of our favorite things to do, even though we have seen every resort at LEAST once, we still love going, Disney is so good at keeping things fresh that there is always something new to see! My tip would be to go to one of the monorail resorts, and then take the monorail to all of them on the monorail line, and then go to the Boardwalk resorts and walk them all....you can see quite a number of the resorts that way in a short amount of time, and really take in the scenery you may not get driving or taking the bus between them.

 

[nurse.darcy]

If you are driving, you have an advantage here. You can visit any of the properties during the day and just show ID. Sometimes they will ask your purpose, just tell them you wish to tour the resort. Gate guards are very accommodating during the day. As evening settles in and dinner hour approaches, you should be aware that at some resorts (where parking is quite tight), the guards will want you to have a specific purpose (such as eating a meal there). As a local who loves to visit resorts, I have never had a problem going to any of the resorts during the day for a look see and/or a meal.

 

[Goofy_Disney_Dad]

Thanks so much to all of you for your help and advice! We are driving, so this should work out pretty well. Can't believe I'm getting excited over this but I'm really looking forward to this very much.

We're going the first week in October 2010 so I'm assuming it will be relatively light for crowds, unless the first week of the food and wine show is much more popular than I imagine.