Already planning our 2015 trip & need help...

[DonnaBelle2005]

We just spent 9 nights/10 glorious days at Disney....and stayed at POR. We had free dining and are a family of 5. We are a budget friendly family & this trip was over 5k.

We are seriously thinking of staying off property next time for our 2015 trip. Esp when 1 night at POR was $265/night that we added.

Can you share your favorite close places to stay? Also do any have bus service to/from parks?

Thanks!

 

[Ksquared]

We tried pricing many different onsite options (excluding value resorts) for our 2015 trip as well and I could not justify paying the onsite prices for our next trip.

Your closest offsite resort is Bonnet Creek. It has more of an onsite feel, though, as it is located right next to Caribbean Beach resort. They do have bus service to the parks but we have never used it as we generally have our car or rent a car.

I've also stayed at Vistana Resort. Not sure if they have bus service.

You can also rent a pool home to stay as well. We did this our last trip but you would need to have a car. There are lots of great neighborhoods to choose from.

We are a family of 4 and for us, even with free dining, staying offsite comes out less and I don't cook the entire trip. We eat plenty of meals onsite.

You should definitely explore the options and see how much it costs.

 

[2girlsmom]

We are largely fans of Caribe Royal. It is on World Drive so probably about 10 minutes drive from the parks, they have free parking, free shuttles (we drive so I haven't used them). Generally we get the 2 bedroom suite, which has 1 king bed in the master (and whirlpool tub + walk in shower), 2 queen beds in the 2nd bedroom (full second bath), plus a pull out couch in the living room, full kitchen, laundry, etc but still get daily housekeeping, which is important to me. 2 pools, 1 with water slide and waterfall. Some decent restaurants/coffee shop, snack bar, pool bar. Depending on the time of year/crowdwise, we've gotten as low as $150 or as high as $300 per night, I have never seen the 2 bedrooms higher than $300 when we've gone (we live in Tampa, so go several times throughout the year). They do also have 1 bedroom suites, which are available with 2 queen beds in the bedroom plus the pull out couch, and are less expensive (we just really like the space and privacy), the one time we stayed in a 1 bedroom was over Mother's Day weekend and the price at that time was $149 per night for the 1 bedroom, as I recall (paid with points).

 

[KEVD]

We stayed at Windsor Hills in Kissimmee in 2012 and loved it. We're going back in April 2015 and staying at the same place. The condo we rent is a 2BR; 2 BA; full kithchen and in room laundry. It's very reasonably priced. You do have to rent a car but I compared what it would have cost to stay at one of the on site moderates and we still paid less at Windsor Hills even after factoring in car rental. Additionally, with a condo you get a full kitchen, which gives you the option to eat meals in, which saves a signoficant amount of money. On top of all that you get the comfort of having the extra elbow room than you do staying at a moderate or budget on prop.

We've also stayed at the Sheraton Vistana and enjoyed that as well but we get incredible value at Windosr Hills.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Can you share your favorite close places to stay? Also do any have bus service to/from parks?

Sheraton Vistana Resort is our home away from home. We love it there, and can't imagine staying anywhere else.

Villas are spacious and well equipped, the resort is beautiful and has tons of amenities (7 pools, 6 hot tubs, basketball and volleyball courts, multiple playgrounds, farmers market, tennis courts, mini golf, daily scheduled activities, etc.) and its in a prime location for visiting virtually any of the Orlando parks. This thread has tons of great information on the resort, and is well worth a read:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3148502

You will get a 1200 square foot two bedroom, two bathroom villa with a screened in balcony, jacuzzi tub, and in-room laundry facilities at SVR (which also has free parking, free wifi, and no resort fee) cheaper than the tiny room at POR. Being a timeshare, you may not get daily housekeeping (depending on how you book your stay) so I'm not sure if that would be bothersome to you.

SVR does offer shuttles to the park, but we have never taken them. I would strongly recommend a rental car for an offsite stay, at SVR or any other offsite property (you will more than save enough to pay for vehicle rental, parking and fuel costs versus a Disney moderate or deluxe and STILL be in money). Shuttles offer limited service and we want the flexibility to come and go on our own timetable. We find driving around the Orlando area to be pretty easy, too....definitely tourist-friendly.

 

[MarcJ55]

You will get a 1200 square foot two bedroom, two bathroom villa with a screened in balcony, jacuzzi tub, and in-room laundry facilities at SVR (which also has free parking, free wifi, and no resort fee).

I would strongly recommend a rental car for an offsite stay, at SVR or any other offsite property (you will more than save enough to pay for vehicle rental, parking and fuel costs versus a Disney moderate or deluxe and STILL be in money). Shuttles offer limited service and we want the flexibility to come and go on our own timetable. We find driving around the Orlando area to be pretty easy, too....definitely tourist-friendly.

I completely agree with everything you just said. Just want to emphasize the importance of having rental car. Our hotel had a pretty bad shuttle schedule that would have had us arrive at the park later than we wanted to, and force us to leave too early. Your own car gives you freedom to come and go as you please. Plus you will need it to do your grocery and souvenir shopping. Tip: Walmart near WDW has an AWESOME and MASSIVE souvenir department.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

You can check out the Wyndham Bonnet Creek thread on this board...we stayed in a 3 bed/2 bath for $120/night a couple of years ago and are staying again for a short 4 night trip in a 2 bedroom for $105/night next month. Those prices are all-inclusive of any fees and taxes. I looked at other timeshare and vacation home resorts on VRBO and HomeAway and some looked cheaper per night, but when you added in their taxes, booking fees and cleaning fees, almost all of them were more.

We've also stayed at a townhome in Windsor Hills. We didn't have the best luck with our rental, but we would consider trying it again. That was $550 for the entire week, all-in.