I need help: To stay or not to stay is the question..

[professorkev]

We booked Disney Boardwalk Villa for Nov 30th 7 nights. Now wife decided she doesn't want to spend that money on a villa. Agent said Carribeam is available, regular rooms (hotel costs about $1300) villa was $2700. Then I checked into resorts right off Disney and found Bonnet creek Wyndham 2 bedroom condo ($700).

I like the idea of more room, especially because I have difficulties in falling asleep, thus a livingroom is nice so I can just sleep out there. but I am sure Disney walking will tire the hell out of me.

My question is this Taking our 2 kids 5 & 3 year old to Disney should we stay on grounds to get the FULL experience and Christmas decorations or enjoy the space and $$ savings and stay at Bonnett ; which is RIGHT behind the Caribbean beach resort.

any opinions?

 

[pepe of ohio]

Nothing says Disney like staying on site. We've done 43 trips, all on site and if I'm making the 1100 mile trek, I'm staying on site no matter what the cost. We plan each trip like it's the last. We don't drive on vacation, enjoy being hauled around by Disney transportation, if we have a few drinks, no big deal, hop a bus, boat or monorail. I know the savings are cheaper off site, but the back and forth, thru traffic, getting gas.....not something I think of for a Disney vacation.. Nope, for all the tea in china, we'll never stay off site or in a value, we enjoy the amemities, atmosphere and ambiance of the Disney resorts and popping down to the pool, late at night with some wine and feeling the magic is our piece of heaven.

 

[Hugpug]

Nothing says Disney like staying on site. We've done 43 trips, all on site and if I'm making the 1100 mile trek, I'm staying on site no matter what the cost. We plan each trip like it's the last. We don't drive on vacation, enjoy being hauled around by Disney transportation, if we have a few drinks, no big deal, hop a bus, boat or monorail. I know the savings are cheaper off site, but the back and forth, thru traffic, getting gas.....not something I think of for a Disney vacation.. Nope, for all the tea in china, we'll never stay off site or in a value, we enjoy the amemities, atmosphere and ambiance of the Disney resorts and popping down to the pool, late at night with some wine and feeling the magic is our piece of heaven.

I second this. Nothing like staying on site. As long as I can afford it I choose on site.

 

[NancyIL]

I stayed at Bonnet Creek for 3 nights before a cruise last December, and will do so again in February for 3 nights. (We're going to Universal pre-cruise, and will stay at the Swan post-cruise when visiting WDW.) No - they're not Disney, but they are about as close as you can get to Disney property without being on-site. If you stay there, I would strongly suggest you rent a car rather than rely on their bus transportation to the parks.

 

[DisneyWisher]

I am an onsite lover but in January we will be staying at Bonnet Creek. It's 4 adults and DD17, at first we were looking into 2 rooms at WL for $1600 but Bonnet Creek would be less than half. I've stayed at Disney onsite for at least 40 trips in the past 10 yrs. We want the space that Bonnet Creek can offer. Plus with your little ones they zero entry pools are ideal. Search Wyndham Bonnet Creek on YouTube, I found this better for getting an idea on the rooms. One I love is a little toddler boy floating on the lazy river with his mom. He's just loving it. He has water wings. So cute.

 

[sjs314]

Nothing says Disney like staying on site. We've done 43 trips, all on site and if I'm making the 1100 mile trek, I'm staying on site no matter what the cost. We plan each trip like it's the last. We don't drive on vacation, enjoy being hauled around by Disney transportation, if we have a few drinks, no big deal, hop a bus, boat or monorail. I know the savings are cheaper off site, but the back and forth, thru traffic, getting gas.....not something I think of for a Disney vacation.. Nope, for all the tea in china, we'll never stay off site or in a value, we enjoy the amemities, atmosphere and ambiance of the Disney resorts and popping down to the pool, late at night with some wine and feeling the magic is our piece of heaven.

I agree with the pp 100%, we stayed at the Travelodge now a Best Western, our first 2 trips to Disney in '89 and '90 located near what is now DTD but back then was Disney Village MarketPlace,while it was convienent, they ran buses every 20 minutes, we were able to purchase our park passes at the hotels guest services and we could walk to the MarketPace, they had a fantastic in house Restaurant, Traders, but staying on site is the only way to go now that there are so many resorts on property to choose from.

Nothing can beat the themeing of the Disney Resorts and the total immersion into that which is the fantasy of Disney by staying on property.

With having 2 lil ones I would want to stay onsite to make it easier to head back to my resort for a mid-day break and nap if needed. I do think you would be much more comfortable with the Villa not to mention having laundry facilities in the room I think would be great with 2 lil ones.

 

[tcuplvr]

I agree with the staying on site group. It is the total immersion that just makes the vacation that much more special. I stayed off site once and IMHO the experience is totally different.

 

[Amy&Dan]

Nothing says Disney like staying on site. We've done 43 trips, all on site and if I'm making the 1100 mile trek, I'm staying on site no matter what the cost. We plan each trip like it's the last. We don't drive on vacation, enjoy being hauled around by Disney transportation, if we have a few drinks, no big deal, hop a bus, boat or monorail. I know the savings are cheaper off site, but the back and forth, thru traffic, getting gas.....not something I think of for a Disney vacation.. Nope, for all the tea in china, we'll never stay off site or in a value, we enjoy the amemities, atmosphere and ambiance of the Disney resorts and popping down to the pool, late at night with some wine and feeling the magic is our piece of heaven.

Pepe is a smart guy and this sums up how I feel as well! The transportation is a huge factor for us, we don't drive (live almost 2000 miles away) so Magical Express saves us money, dh and I both enjoy a cocktail or two and having a designated driver is nice!

I can vouch for CBR. It has a wonderful pool area with a zero entry, pirate splash area for kids, three slides for toddlers and younger kids, and two longer slides for older kids or daring younger ones! It has two hot tubs, a pool bar, a food court and a full serve restaurant. Its rooms are the largest moderate category rooms, and my family of four enjoys them.

I have a very hard time sleeping quite often. Never at Disney! Probably the combination of a lot of walking and being too content to be sleepless!

We have done DVC villas and the extra space is nice, but then again, we didn't use it that much.

I am all for saving money these days, the moderates work very well for us. We have two kids that are now paying adults by Disney standards, our airfare from Denver is always high and we enjoy nice meals while on vacation (not to the extent some do but we do enjoy eating at many Disney restaurants) and we like to have park hoppers and often the water park add on. All that generally adds up to about 5K total if we stay moderate. Sometimes more. So avoiding the deluxe's right now is key to our being able to go to WDW at least once a year, generally more. We love them and find them to be very nice.

I will say that if I ever venture offsite, Bonnet Creek will be the one I choose. Its basically on Disney property but I would miss EMH, Magical Express and all the Disney magic. Square footage at home is key to my sanity, on vacation I am fine with a standard hotel room!

 

[DisneyWisher]

I am an onsite lover but in January we will be staying at Bonnet Creek. It's 4 adults and DD17, at first we were looking into 2 rooms at WL for $1600 but Bonnet Creek would be less than half. I've stayed at Disney onsite for at least 40 trips in the past 10 yrs. We want the space that Bonnet Creek can offer. Plus with your little ones they zero entry pools are ideal. Search Wyndham Bonnet Creek on YouTube, I found this better for getting an idea on the rooms. One I love is a little toddler boy floating on the lazy river with his mom. He's just loving it. He has water wings. So cute.

 

[professorkev]

Yeah tough choice Immersion of the Disney experience or enjoy the 8 days with a 2 bedroom SPACE that is 500ft from the resort entrance (right behind Carribbean) I don't see traffice being a problem because there are no other properties between Bonnet Creek Wyngham and Disney; literally around the corner.



UGH!

Oh, I've been to Disney before 5X Last being in 1997. Loved it then and looking forward to returning!

 

[MickeyNicki]

I would try the Swan/Dolphin...they are awesome hotels, very close to everything and they are pretty inexpensive. You get free internet, bottles of water daily, newspaper, same bus service as the BWI and surrounding Dis resorts.

 

[professorkev]

I thought of the Swan but no disney theme there and they were booked (I'm a starwood member with enough points that it would pay for a stay there) .

I'm also thinking of splitting the stay, 3 nights at Caribbean and then 4 nights at Bonnet because there it's cheap enough that I can book an extra day and use that time to due to a late nite flight the night before. (bonnett doesn'ty do late check out!


PS
Suggestion to all first timers planning a trip to Disney...PROZAC medication! need to control the anxiety ya' know lol

 

[saintfan]

Did the offsite before the driving,parking not the best experience.Onsite walk to the bus stop hop on let Disney transportation do all the work so you can have all the fun.Don't forget the Extra Magic Hours more time in the parks to watch the kids have more park time PRICELESS.Me DW DS DD

 

[rie'smom]

Onsite is nice but you want everyone happy. If your wife won't be happy, then I'd go with Bonnet Creek. You have extra space and you're right next to CBR. If you don't rent a car, take taxis.

 

[dunbarfamily]

Nothing says Disney like staying on site. We've done 43 trips, all on site and if I'm making the 1100 mile trek, I'm staying on site no matter what the cost. We plan each trip like it's the last. We don't drive on vacation, enjoy being hauled around by Disney transportation, if we have a few drinks, no big deal, hop a bus, boat or monorail. I know the savings are cheaper off site, but the back and forth, thru traffic, getting gas.....not something I think of for a Disney vacation.. Nope, for all the tea in china, we'll never stay off site or in a value, we enjoy the amemities, atmosphere and ambiance of the Disney resorts and popping down to the pool, late at night with some wine and feeling the magic is our piece of heaven.

I agree, but I will stay at values

We stayed off site on our very first trip and I will never do it again. So much of the magic is taken away when you come and go off property. Disney is my time to get away from it all too, and be in a fantasy land. I don't want to see anything that reminds me of real life, including WalMarts, restaurants, etc. It breaks the magic spell.

On one trip, we broke away mid-week to go to the Space Center. I won't ever do that again. The Space Center was great, but I won't do it in the middle of the trip, because it broke the magic.

Another trip, we left mid-stay for the day to visit my aunt, and while I really enjoyed visiting with her, I will either do it at the beginning or end of the stay, because it broke the spell.

I encourage you to stay on site and enjoy it! Yes, you can save money staying off site, but you're loosing some of the experience, in my opinion.

 

[Disney grandma]

We booked Disney Boardwalk Villa for Nov 30th 7 nights. Now wife decided she doesn't want to spend that money on a villa. Agent said Carribeam is available, regular rooms (hotel costs about $1300) villa was $2700. Then I checked into resorts right off Disney and found Bonnet creek Wyndham 2 bedroom condo ($700).

I like the idea of more room, especially because I have difficulties in falling asleep, thus a livingroom is nice so I can just sleep out there. but I am sure Disney walking will tire the hell out of me.

My question is this Taking our 2 kids 5 & 3 year old to Disney should we stay on grounds to get the FULL experience and Christmas decorations or enjoy the space and $$ savings and stay at Bonnett ; which is RIGHT behind the Caribbean beach resort.

any opinions?

With a 5 and 3 year old I don't think I would do a split stay, get settled in wherever you choose and enjoy your trip. Personally, with the savings you are getting at Bonnet Creek, I would go there. As stated, you are practically on Disney grounds, and your children will still get the "Disney magic"by going to the parks a few hours a day. At that age, you can spend more time enjoying your resort. Book a character meal or two and relax, Disney should be fun and not so stressful, but we all want to have that "perfect trip".

 

[professorkev]

UPDATE: Mr. Eisner (CEO of Disney) called me and upgraded us to the Floridian grand Suite, so were all set. Oh wait, that was my dream,,,,,sorry!

True update: Yeah I'm thinking of doing a split stay, 3 days at Boardwalk Villa and then 4 days at Bonnett, that way we get the best of both and experience both.

Honestly, I never understood why people go back so often, but with the inexpensive ways I can now understand. Between places like Bonnet, renting DVC points ; it's so cheap. And there is more than Disney around there. I'd love to get a 12 day stay and do Disney and Se World and a beach.

So still trying to decide and waiting to hear back from a few about DVC point rental availability.

Agree though, you do lose some of it when you leave Disney grounds.

 

[Lumiere Lover]

Stay on site at all costs! The transportation to and from the resorts is great, and you never have to leave all the Disney Magic.

The only time we now stay off site is because of work functions.

For a family vacation, you will prefer to be on site.

 

[Sharkbyte]

IF you can, STAY on Disney properties. It is SO much nicer and a much beter experience for the whole family...Trust me. We;ve been staying on Disney properties for 15 years. The Villa's are better for comfort, space and convenieince BUT it will cost you. Depending on your budget, it is worth it if you take one big vacation a year. If you take more than one,staying on property at Disney is great too!

 

[ols386]

We stayed at the Wyndham Bonnet Creek in February of this year.

It's a really really nice resort. We really enjoyed staying there. It was very quiet. We never heard a peep from anyone while in our 2-bedroom unit.

They did have a place where you could get sandwiches, salads, etc., but it was a pretty dinky little place, and not all that great, IMO. I missed having a food court or restaurant for on-site dining, like you would get staying at a Disney resort.

There were several swimming pools there, and some of them had lazy rivers, and the pools were very pretty. There was a lake in the middle of the resort, and it was nice too. I believe they also have miniature golf.

I think there is a bus for transportation to and from the Disney parks, but we did not use the bus, as we had a rental car.

The Wyndham was very conveniently located near Epcot, HWS, and DTD.