Value Resort or DTD Hotel?

[Poly Pal]

If transportation was not an issue (you had a car and were planning on driving anywhere anyway) but room size and amenities were important to you, which would you choose:

All Star whatever

Or

Wyndham, Hilton, or Courtyard in DTD?

Thanks for any suggestions!

 

[NHBelle]

Well if breakfast were included I would seriously consider a DTD hotel. I love the all stars, but the rooms are very small and the busses are always very crowded. I have done a lot of research on the DTD hotels and think that you get some really great rates and some include breakfast. The pools are probably plain, but I bet the lobbies and rooms are themed quite well and probably can even see fireworks etc. from your room. Might want to check codes though, usually can get a moderate disney hotel for the same price as a DTD hotel

 

[Luv2Roam]

I was so honked off at CRO earlier this year I was checking out DTD hotels. They were running the same, if not higher. in cost.
The downside I see is the transportation. It isn't as convenient as what WDW bus system is suppose to be. (We had great WDW bus service, up until our May stay.)
A WDW bus take you up closer to the entrance, (supposedly) run more often and won't leave you waiting in the middle of a hot, black topped parking lot.
But if you have a car.... However, think of the long lines of cars coming in and going out. We found a car to be a lot of bother.
Seems you would have more of a hotel feel, rather than a resort stay.
Not to mention all the CM's lanyards I would miss if I stayed off-site!
I would go with an AS first, personally.

 

[susy]

When are you going? For how long? What kind of a price difference are you finding?

We prefer the AS to DTD, but if you have a car (you have to pay the $6 a day fee at the parks), the DTD have more room amenities. The rooms I've seen are basic and plain(no theming at all), but they are large and you get a full service hotel.

 

[Debbie]

I made the conscious decision to try Courtyard this trip. We had a great price at ASMu, but were able to get a fabulous price ($20.02) at the DTD hotel. I am anticipating a stay in a different sort of hotel, but I think that we will be quite happy with it. Since we almost always drive to the parks, anyhow, that is a moot point. We will, however, have to add the cost of parking onto our stay-but even with that, we're coming out ahead of the game. I'm looking forward to some cheap meals offsite, hoping for a tower room overlooking DTD, and maybe not a resort feel, but certainly a holiday feel. Oh, and one of the things that I know we'll be doing? Resort hopping-to shop, and check those lanyards!

(Don't forget, this is the WDW resort board, so you will get a 98% response of "onsite only"! Now, I love onsite, BUT, imho, the magic ISN'T in onsite, the Magic is the people that you are with ie. exclusive time with your family.)

 

[Mrs. P]

We just got back from CBR and spent a few evenings at DTD. There is a lot of road construction around DTD and the hotels there. We were extremely glad to be able to ride the Disney buses. There are two stops, one at the Marketplace and one at Pleasure Island. Thought you would like to know before you make a decision. It also depends when you plan to go.

 

[wdwcrazy]

I stay on Disney Property 99% of the time but I have on occasion stayed off property for different reasons. Usually last minute decision to travel has made it difficult or not cost effective to stay on the Disney property. But in answer to your question I have stayed on a Courtyard by Marriott in Little Lake Bryan right outside of Disney off of SR 535 and I-4. It is literally a mile outside the Disney village gates. The hotel was only built maybe 2 years ago and is inside a gated Marriott community. It has a standard pool that has both an outside and an inside area to it. So if you are going during the winter this is an option to consider. You don't have to worry about the weather. It also has a complimentary continental breakfast and transportation. I have never used their transportation as I always have a rental car. But the prices for this hotel or the Fairfield Inn next to it have ranged in price from a whopping $39 to the high of $99. The $99 being New Years Eve. I have stayed at this location at holiday time in January and also in May and Sept when caught without a room. I couldn't have been happier with both the location and price of these hotels. The Fairfield king suite room has a refrigerator in it which can be helpful. The room at these hotels are much larger than the rooms at the All Star resorts. My choice would not be the All Star. But these Marriott hotels at Little Lake Bryan.

 

[Disneycrazymom]

We have stayed at both the Hilton and the All Stars. They are different and offer different experiences. The Hilton is a very nice hotel, the staff was great, especially with our kids. The transportation really didn't work for us and we ended up renting a car. The busses do not take you to the gates of MK, unfortunitaly your car will not either and it is the most difficult park to visit by car or off site bus. If you plan to spend a lot of time at MK stay at All Stars and let the Disney busses make it easy, if not head to DD, look for a deal, rent a car and sign up for a frequent visitor program.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We spent one night in the Wyndham and it was very nice. Good beds, nice pool, and right across the street from DTD. I think I might stay there if all I could afford on site was the All Stars. We stayed there one night before we headed down to Vero Beach. We had our own car and we also have PAPs so we didn't have to pay for parking anyway.

 

[marchdisney]

We (family of 5, me, wife, 3 girls ages 13, 9, and 2) stayed at Hilton in March 2001 for a week, then at All Stars for a quick return surprise new year's trip for 2 nights in Jan. While All Stars was great fun, we enjoyed the Hilton more....the location at Downtown Disney, the free breakfast (I am Hilton Honors Gold member), the feel of the hotel...it just suited us better. It really was not that big of a deal to us to only be taken to the TTC, but we were there in March...in the summer, that might be a bigger deal...but we will NEVER go in the summer, too crowded and hot for me! It's just a matter of choice and preferences....I am a fan of the Downtown Disney hotels, but have never stayed anywhere on site except All-Stars. Our next trip we would have to get 2 rooms at All Stars or pay a little more for a larger room at Hilton...I save up points so we can stay at Hilton free. I think being able to walk to DD is a real plus for the Hilton. Good luck,you'll love wherever you decide to stay!

 

[GoofysPrincess]

We stayed at a DTD hotel last year when they were offering the incredibly low rates -- I just couldn't justify the extra for WDW properties. These were my complaints:

1.) CNN was always blaring in the lobby which kind of 'broke' the magic for us, especially with the state of the world at the time. I would have much preferred to hear happy Disney music at the beginning/end of every day. (Seems small, I know, but we go to WDW to 'get away' and like being immersed in WDW magic.)
2.) Our room 'view' was nasty. Now we didn't look out all that often, but I don't just mean a parking lot or 'non-water-view' -- I mean it was of piled up trash and just nasty. We closed the curtains and kept them closed. It was just another reminder.
3.) The breakfast served was, to us, not worth the $4 they were charging us for it. We ate there one day and then WDW after that. The room was cheap enough that we weren't relying on this perk to justify the cost, it just would have been more convenient.

It was very nice to walk to DTD as it was just us adults and we like hanging out at PI. We thought the landscaping along the walkway was very nice and made for an enjoyable walk. The service at our hotel was very good (except their Disney information/services desk was often wrong -- would have been very frustrating to a first-timer...). We had a bit of a screw-up with our room which they were very quick to correct. We also had a car, so transportation wasn't an issue.

However, in retrospect, we wished we had stayed on property. I guess we just like that Disney touch.

 

[kgkmom]

Last year, my DD and I stayed at the Courtyard, using the $20 rate. How could we pass it up? Well, I should have spent the extra $40 or so to stay at an All-Stars, because the Courtyard room was awful. It was musty-smelling, damp, and my DD was bitten by bed bugs the entire stay. I know that bed bugs occur at even the priciest hotels, but it certainly put a damper on things! The pool was small, but not crowded at all.

The bus transportation was not as convenient as on-site transportation, but it was adequate. My main complaint was the bus service from the water parks, which was terrible. It also took *forever* to get anywhere, because each bus stopped at nearly every DTD resort. It sometimes took us 45 minutes to get anywhere, even to EPCOT.

It was wonderful to be so close to DTD, and my DD and I walked there nearly every night.

I would not stay at DTD hotels again. The magic simply isn't there!

Sarah in RI