Do you really need a car if staying off site?

[JaxCon]

I assume so but dh claims Sheraton Vistana Resort has transportation to all parks and renting a car won't be necessary. I think it sounds scary to be at the mercy of hotel transportation. DH is thinking of WDW transportation but I don't think it will be like that.

Any thoughts?

 

[Keacc]

While a car is not necessary, It is a great help. The busses run on a scheule and if you miss one, you have to wait a while for another. It is also great to be able to go to restaurants off property. You can save a lot of money and hassle that way.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

Since you live in NC, why don't you drive?? We make it from NY in 20 hours. Your drive should be 10??

I've stayed at Vistana. We had our car so I don't know about the shuttles. I don't even want to stay on-site without a car but I suppose you could do it.

It is very close to DTD. We loved it there. DH doesn't want to stay on-site anymore because of the great time we had there.

Sorry can't help with transportation. Have a great trip.

 

[spiceycat]

are you renting from Sheraton Vistana?

or are you using a timeshares - either your own, or a week rented from a member?

if the first then the bus transportation is not great -but okay.

the second - it is cheaper to rent a car.

bus transportation is only free when you rent directly from them.

for timeshares owners or renters bus transportation is $7 (might be $9) per person per day- you can rent a car in Orlando for around $21 to $30 a day.

I drive from Birmingham it is around 9 to 12 hours depending upon stops and traffic.

IT is NOT WDW transportation at all.

 

[JaxCon]

Wow thanks Spicycat - didnt know that, it is our timeshare so I guess it would cost!

Mom of....We may drive if airfare dosn't drastically drop anyway. It is about 10 hours for us, not too bad we just like to fly.

Thanks all.

 

[#1 TITANS FAN]

Rent the car. Did offsite once w\o a car, never again. You're constantly having to adjust your schedule (leave the parks) to the shuttles, the location of some of the pickup points is not real close to the entrances; to get to the magic kingdom you have to ride the shuttle to the ttc and then take either the ferry or monorail.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

Rent the car. Did offsite once w\o a car, never again. You're constantly having to adjust your schedule (leave the parks) to the shuttles, the location of some of the pickup points is not real close to the entrances; to get to the magic kingdom you have to ride the shuttle to the ttc and then take either the ferry or monorail.

Yea, see this is why I don't think I would be off-site without a car. Ofcourse, like I said, I didn't even like staying on-site without a car.

JaxCon.............oh, only 10 hours..............I only wish our drive was that short. THat sounds pretty odd, doesn't it? There are people that would hate that. It's all in your persective I guess.

 

[Gillian]

I would think that staying offsite you'd want to have a car for grocery shopping & eating off site.

 

[zurgswife]

I had a friend do offsite without a car once..he said never again...you are at the mercy of the shuttle...spent lots of time waiting...

 

[Madaboutthemouse]

I stayed off-site a few years ago and relyed on the hotel shuttle. The schedule that we were given gave a specific pick-up/drop-off for MGM and Epcot, but the parking space for Magic Kingdom varied by the day. Since we were park-hopping, we started at MGM, but were going to end up at the Magic Kingdom. Our hotel front desk said that we could just ask the transportation desk at the TTC where our bus would be parked. To make a long story short, it didn't work out. We tried waiting an extra two hours for the late shuttle, but it wasn't where we were told either. Luckily, my grandparents were able to come and pick us up, otherwise a taxi would have been our only way home.

 

[disneysteve]

I would never do offsite (or onsite for that matter) without my own car. It is far more convenient to drive yourself than to have to wait for a bus. Most offsite shuttles run fairly limited schedules and sometimes stop at multiple hotels along the way. You will waste a huge amount of time and be constantly watching the clock if you are dependent on the shuttles. Far better to have your own car and come and go when and where you want.

Plus, as mentioned, you need a car to do other things like grocery shopping, offsite dining, hotel-hopping, other attractions, etc. When figuring the cost, remember that you won't need ground transportation to and from the airport.

 

[HappyLawyer]

i would not stay offsite without a rental car, you can come and go as you please. It is just nice to have one.

 

[elsa2304]

Staying offsite without your own car is like a disaster waiting to happen. Also, the offsite hotel shuttles usually only run certain hours of the day and you may want to go to Pleasure Island or do some exploring of your own when you are there. Also, as others have said, if you want to have bfast in your room, you'll need groceries.
It is just a lot safer (reliability-wise, that is) and much less-nerve wracking by just having your own transportation if not staying onsite.

 

[mbb]

.........JaxCon.............oh, only 10 hours..............I only wish our drive was that short. THat sounds pretty odd, doesn't it? There are people that would hate that. It's all in your persective I guess.

38 + hours for us....LOL!! and we're thinking of doing it!!!

 

[powellrj]

If you use codes, renting a car isn't that expensive. I would never stay on or off site without one. I don't like having to rely on others to get us where we need to be.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

38 + hours for us....LOL!! and we're thinking of doing it!!!

Oh, my heart!! Whew! I guess I should be grateful!

But, I must say........if we lived 38 hours away we would probably be driving right there with ya! My DH and I have taken our children to places like San Diego,CA on a plane. Everything went fine but we were like sardines, with the car seat, diaper bag, carryons, then the stroller........AAAAA!!! And that was before 9-11. We have flown since then just the two of us and what a hassle. I know some must do it because they are only going to be there 5-7 days anyway.....so why drive. But it just wasn't fun for us.

Sorry, didn't mean to hijack the thread........

 

[VacationDad]

I assume so but dh claims Sheraton Vistana Resort has transportation to all parks and renting a car won't be necessary. I think it sounds scary to be at the mercy of hotel transportation. DH is thinking of WDW transportation but I don't think it will be like that.

Any thoughts?

I stayed at the Vistana last year and at first didn't have a rental car. The Vistana is so large that we needed a car just to get to places within the resort. So I rented one after the first day there. I found out that the Vistana shuttle schedule was pretty limited too.

 

[RC Fan]

Hello!

I do believe it is possible to stay off-site without a car. I guess it depends on your situation(I don't have kids), and your expectations( I am willing to make my plans around the hotel shuttle schedule). Of course, if you are planning to do without a car, you can pick your hotel accordingly. I try to pick some place that has a decent shuttle schedule, and also has a grocery or convenience store within walking distance.