WDW resort v. off site hotel

[AA25]

We have gone to Disney twice in the past several years, and stayed at the Grand Floridian both times- obviously it is a beautiful hotel, and super convenient with the monorail. (We did not pay for these trips, they were family trips). I always said that when I paid, we would stay somewhere off site, or a more economical hotel to lower the cost.

I am looking into planning our next trip for November 2017, so not in peak season (also too far out for me to price compare at off site hotels). My youngest will be 2.5 at that time, so we will still have a stroller, and she will still be napping. I priced out the monorail hotels v. non monorail hotels.. the cost was higher obviously at the monorail ones, but not as bad as I expected. (The 5 of us were perfectly comfortable in a regular room at the Grand Floridian, btw).

Here is my question, and I realize that this is a totally personal decision, and largely based on budget and what we value....

Is the convenience factor of staying on the monorail line worth the extra money? We have really enjoyed it the past 2 times, but again it was not my money. Some hotels are half the price. How long does it actually take get to the Magic Kingdom (for example) from the Art of Animation? What about from a nearby off site hotel? (I am less inclined to do this because I think having a car, driving, and parking the car + hotel cost would end up costing more than staying on site)- but maybe less of a hassle than the bus?

 

[Tnkrbl16]

We have stayed onsite all but one of our Disney trips. The only time we didn't was when are kids were much older and didn't need a midday break. We stayed at POFQ on our last trip and loved it! It is a relatively small resort. We did take midday breaks to swim and nap, and didn't feel like we were using too much time out of the parks. With small kids I would definitely recommend onsite, but don't restrict yourself to the monorail resorts.

 

[davper]

Staying off-site has other hassles that I don't think is worth the cost savings.

• Getting out of the world at the same time everyone else is leaving.
• Onsite hotel amenities don't match Disney
• Having to rent a car
• leaving the bubble makes it feel like your day is over.

Look at moderates like Port Orleans. When I stayed there, I didn't feel like my travel to and from was very long. I have never stayed in a value, so I can't comment on the time.

 

[mernin]

We've stayed offsite in a nearby condo both trips when we travelled with our kids (first time at 3.5, second time at almost 7 and almost 3) and we didn't find it inconvenient. We have never stayed at a monorail resort so we compared it with staying at CSR which is where we stayed on our trip before our kids. I found that using the busses took almost as long as driving our selves. I don't mind having the car and it didn't add that much expense for us (we booked it with points) and we saved $$ for sure on the condo costs & meals we ate at the condo. We had 4 bedrooms, our own pool and the facility had 2 other pools & 2 hot tubs. It was also about 5 minutes from Target. Our driving time from condo doorstep to TTA was 19 minutes.

For us it depends on the length of time we are staying at WDW. The past two trips were 7-10 days so the condo made sense for us. Our next trip is just 2 nights on either side of a cruise so we are staying onsite and picking hotels we wouldn't if we were staying for a longer time - Poly & AKV through a DVC rental.

 

[AA25]

We have stayed onsite all but one of our Disney trips. The only time we didn't was when are kids were much older and didn't need a midday break. We stayed at POFQ on our last trip and loved it! It is a relatively small resort. We did take midday breaks to swim and nap, and didn't feel like we were using too much time out of the parks. With small kids I would definitely recommend onsite, but don't restrict yourself to the monorail resorts.

There's a tremendous cost difference between the monorail ones and most of the moderates, so I feel you on that. After doing the monorail ones, I think I got spoiled. We would only be going for 4 days, so that plays in as well.

 

[Hootch]

I think we would only stay offsite if there was a large family group and that would be in a large house with amenities.

We stayed once at the Contemporary when our son was 3.5 years and my wife was five months pregnant. Getting back for naps and not having to worry about transportation at the end of the night was worth it.

We stayed All Stars for three nights, partially to save money. We had a condo at the beach after Disney. It worked well, but we have never gone back.

The last number of trips we have stayed at POFQ. The resort is small. In heavier times they have their own buses. They may be crowded in the morning and evening but we have little issue with transportation. There is no sit down restaurant though POR is not far away. The grounds are lush. In the summer, rates are around $200. Sometimes they are included in room discounts and sometimes not.

If you are looking at a hotel, make sure you understand the transportation schedule. I know people that stayed at the Four Seasons that loved the hotel and hated the transportation and the transportation won out. They will not stay there again if they want to go to the parks.

 

[jknewberry]

We went in 2012, and stayed at a very nice off site hotel- Embassy Suites Orlando. It was fairly close to the parks, spacious rooms, excellent (free) breakfast. My uncle took us and was paying, and really didn't like the onsite prices (. My husband and I are frugal, but after seeing all the time it took to get to the parks, we vowed that we'd stay on site when we came back. The next year, we took my inlaws and stayed at the Wilderness Lodge (a bit of a splurge but SO worth it) and we're going again next year! With little ones and older ones on the trip, the convenience of being on site is huge- and I really doubt we'll ever stay anywhere but one of the resorts on the monorail or with boat transportation.

 

[mich1073]

If you can get them cheap enough, I would look into the Cabins at Fort Wilderness (or even renting a trailer and getting a campsite) as your child is the perfect age to love all about the FW. The movies and campfire sing along are amazing there! Maybe even Wilderness Lodge, as its price is less than monorail hotels but the transportation is still ALOT easier than all other on site to MK. By hopping a boat to MK is great way to get there.

Third Port Orleans Riverside is really nice, and a super nice moderate. It would be my third choice, but you can always look into Swan and Dolphin too as they have all the same disney transportation and right at the Boardwalk and you can get decent deal there if they are offering them.

Off site, I would either do a Disney Springs hotel (http://disneyspringshotels.com/) the buses that runs every 20 minutes to all of the hotels. Or Bonnet Creek. Nothing further from those though, if you want to head back. Wyndham Bonnet Creek, you can uber for around 7 bucks a trip to a park, or even just goto the Boardwalk for Epcot and etc. Woldrof Astoria & Hilton over there has transportation, but I have not stayed at either.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

So first point I think your version of "off site" is different than everyone elses versions of off site on this board...when we we hear the word off site we think of a hotel that is not owned or operated by disney so like the hilton or holiday inn or a condo or timeshare that you can rent. I think your version of off site is the same as my mother in laws being "not on the monorail" lol. That being said we have stayed on the monorail the past 2 trips when my youngest son was 8 months old and 20 months old and still going back to the hotel for breaks. If was very easy and convenient and definitely worth the extra money to be able to do that. Our upcoming trip next year my younger son will be 3 and I don't think he will need the midday breaks. We are planning on staying at AKL bc #1 it has Giraffes, lol and #2 it is the cheapest of the deluxe resorts. I honestly don't think we will miss the monorail...for both our trips previously there was always an issue with the monorail and it was extremely hard to get from point A to point B. Last year the monorail was down for the first 3 or 4 days of our trip! I am not paying good money to have access to the monorail when the monorail is down for half our trip. The monorail can be very convenient when its working, but when its down it can be a hassle. I would say to look at other resorts too an don't rule anything out just because they aren't on the monorail. When I made the decision that we didn't "need" to stay on the monorail it opened up this WHOLE new world to us and it took forever to decide which resort we wanted to stay in, LOL

 

[Shanti]

We have gone to Disney twice in the past several years, and stayed at the Grand Floridian both times- obviously it is a beautiful hotel, and super convenient with the monorail. (We did not pay for these trips, they were family trips). I always said that when I paid, we would stay somewhere off site, or a more economical hotel to lower the cost.

I am looking into planning our next trip for November 2017, so not in peak season (also too far out for me to price compare at off site hotels). My youngest will be 2.5 at that time, so we will still have a stroller, and she will still be napping. I priced out the monorail hotels v. non monorail hotels.. the cost was higher obviously at the monorail ones, but not as bad as I expected. (The 5 of us were perfectly comfortable in a regular room at the Grand Floridian, btw).

Here is my question, and I realize that this is a totally personal decision, and largely based on budget and what we value....

Is the convenience factor of staying on the monorail line worth the extra money? We have really enjoyed it the past 2 times, but again it was not my money. Some hotels are half the price. How long does it actually take get to the Magic Kingdom (for example) from the Art of Animation? What about from a nearby off site hotel? (I am less inclined to do this because I think having a car, driving, and parking the car + hotel cost would end up costing more than staying on site)- but maybe less of a hassle than the bus?

I recommend either:

1. A garden wing room at the Contemporary. Still on the monorail line (the convenience of which nothing can compare to), and still a deluxe (much nicer room than what you'd get at Art of Animation), yet at a much lower price than what you'd get at Grand Floridian, Polynesian or the Tower rooms at the Contemporary. One bonus of the Contemporary is that you can walk to MK from there, completely bypassing the need for any form of Disney transportation.

2. A very nice offsite hotel located within WDW, such as Hilton Bonnet Creek or Waldorf Astoria Orlando, which have prices similar to Disney moderates, but rooms as nice or better than Disney deluxes. They have complimentary shuttles to the theme parks, but when their times don't work for you, just take a taxi.

I disliked our one stay at a value, so really can't recommend one. They have cute exteriors, but their rooms are basically motel rooms.

 

[Milkshakezilla]

Nothing beats the convenience of staying at the parks. Free transportation and early access are my favorite part of staying at the resorts.

 

[jennygirlmt]

I'm in the minority in thinking Disney hotels are overrated and will never stay onsite again. We stayed at POR in the princess rooms and couldn't believe their basic and outdated appearance, esp for the cost (and we had 40% off!). The food was terrible, breakfast was so processed, I hated not being able to cook anything fresh. We start to feel gross after 2 days of eating out.

We stayed at a house the year before. 5 bedrooms, a kitchen, a private pool and it cost less than one hotel room (granted we were with a group that would have needed 3 hotel rooms). It took maybe 5 minutes longer to get to the parks than it did from POR.

We also had a rental car for other reasons both times, so that wasn't a financial factor (we took the bus once and hated it).

I don't know the cost of a monorail room but I'm fairly certain I'd never feel it was worth it. But if you're used to it and have the money and want to then do it. Everyone has their preferences and comforts!

 

[Klayfish]

I'm in the minority too. I have never stayed on site and can't see where I would. I have nothing against it at all, I bet it's a ton of fun. But for our family, it would never work. We always rent a condo or townhouse. Here's why I very much like staying off property.

1. We're a family of 5. We'd never fit in a hotel room without killing each other. The townhouse gives us 3 or 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, a full family room, kitchen, etc...plus community pool. Having that amount of room to spread out, and the privacy, is fantastic. When we need a rest after a long day, everyone can chill in their own space...or we'll sit as a family at the kitchen table and have dinner and talk.

2. We LOVE having our car with us. It makes getting around WDW so much easier. We can go anywhere we want at any time. It adds about 10 minutes to our commute when we're at MK due to the monorail/ferry, but otherwise it's actually quicker (I think). We can also go all kinds of places right outside WDW, which we love to do. Restaurants, gift shops, etc...

3. We're nutrition nuts. We could never do the dining plan. We cook and bring our own food into the park.

4. I don't know what the WDW hotels cost when included with a package deal, but I'm willing to bet the townhouses we rent are significantly cheaper. We get a nice place for roughly $750/week. Again, that gets us a 3 or 4 bedroom townhouse with full amenities of home. I'm pretty sure all the WDW hotels are more than $100/night per room.

 

[dreiwhit]

I've stayed off site and on site, and for the foreseeable future, we will stay off site. The big reason is cost. When we were pricing out a trip, staying onsite in a value resort with free dining was substantially more expensive than staying off site in a condo with a full kitchen and in room washer and dryer. For us, its a matter of simple economics and the value of what we can get by staying off site.

 

[ZellyB]

Off-site is considerably cheaper even when you figure in the cost of a rental car and parking. We also enjoy the freedom of having the car and avoiding the buses and of course the added space is great for a larger family. We've stayed at Shades of Green as well but haven't stayed at a true Disney resort yet. We are booked to stay at Beach Club Villas in January, so I'm excited to see if the added cost is really going to be worth it.

 

[Shellyred8]

We have gone to Disney twice in the past several years, and stayed at the Grand Floridian both times- obviously it is a beautiful hotel, and super convenient with the monorail. (We did not pay for these trips, they were family trips). I always said that when I paid, we would stay somewhere off site, or a more economical hotel to lower the cost.

I am looking into planning our next trip for November 2017, so not in peak season (also too far out for me to price compare at off site hotels). My youngest will be 2.5 at that time, so we will still have a stroller, and she will still be napping. I priced out the monorail hotels v. non monorail hotels.. the cost was higher obviously at the monorail ones, but not as bad as I expected. (The 5 of us were perfectly comfortable in a regular room at the Grand Floridian, btw).

Here is my question, and I realize that this is a totally personal decision, and largely based on budget and what we value....

Is the convenience factor of staying on the monorail line worth the extra money? We have really enjoyed it the past 2 times, but again it was not my money. Some hotels are half the price. How long does it actually take get to the Magic Kingdom (for example) from the Art of Animation? What about from a nearby off site hotel? (I am less inclined to do this because I think having a car, driving, and parking the car + hotel cost would end up costing more than staying on site)- but maybe less of a hassle than the bus?

Will you be spending most of your time in MK? If EP and HS are in your plans, you might want to look at the Boardwalk resorts. You can walk or boat to both and you can take the monorail to MK. The only time you have to get on a bus is if you want to go to AK or DS. The Boardwalk area is our favorite place to stay for this very reason.

We have also stayed at off-site hotels/condo's/timeshares. They are OK, but then you have to leave the "bubble". For me, part of going to WDW is that I feel like I can really disconnect from the outside world for a bit.

 

[katt789]

I always say staying ON site is worth it, there's just too many other perks that come with it, and the cost of either renting a car for the week, or paying for shuttles to & from the airport and ubering all around the place it balances out anyways,

That being said, there are SO many cheaper options on site too. For AoA, it's about 30 mins on the bus, I always plan to be at the bus stop, say, at 8:20 ish for a 9am opening (anywhere but mk, in which i plan to be there at 8:30 lol). Value resorts are a good choice, the rooms are slightly smaller, same with the beds, but we always enjoy them. The statues are larger than life, very colorful and bright and kid friendly! AoA suites are just as expensive as a deluxe though, and the LM rooms are rather far from the front area of the hotel!

I'd check out Port Orleans! It's one of my favorite resorts, both riverside & fq, they have their own busses, fq only has one stop, (they do sometimes share busses but in the slow times). Pools are nice, theming is awesome, beds are comfortable, and it doesn't take too long to get to MK since they cut down the back road by FW.