First trip May 2017, kitchen or no kitchen for first trip?

[Bubbles41]

Hi- myself, Hubby, daughter 26, nieces (5,21, 30) will be taking first trip to WDW May 2017 but struggle with whether a villa w/full kitchen or two connecting deluxe/moderate rooms are better? Considering renting DVC points for 6 nite trip. Would the expense be worth it for first trip? Any tips for rooms would be great. Even the adults love Art of Animation outside theming and Pool but I worry the family suites would not be large enough I think. Looking for any tips or recommendations. Thanks to all!

 

[powellrj]

I am always in favor of more room and more bathrooms for any more than 2! I would go with the kitchen.

 

[TwoMisfits]

With your group, I'd go offsite and get a 3 bedroom condo...if you want to stay onsite, you're gonna need multiple bedrooms and multiple bathrooms, so an AoA value suite won't cut it...renting points for DVC is your best bet...

 

[halfpintpeggy]

Oh I'd recommend an offsite condo/villa with a full kitchen for sure! The extra space, bathrooms, etc. will make for a much more relaxing vacation...& besides you'll save a bundle by having a kitchen to prepare some of your meals.

 

[Pesky]

It was nice having the kitchenette to stash our stuff and grab a quick breakfast. Offsite would definitely be better for the budget but also explore renting the points. I did that for DLR and am doing that again for a split stay for the upcoming trip. Consider pricing 2 studios as well as a 1 or 2 bedroom. Given the ages, the only one you'd have to keep tabs on is the 5YO.

 

[Bubbles41]

Thanks everyone, we thought of off site but worried we'd be missing too many perks or magical extras offsite vs staying onsite. Will research offsite options and keep that in mind while also exploring renting DVC points. How is the Swan and Dolphin for a first trip? Hubby thinks we could manage with fridge and toaster at least for the mornings we don't want to hustle to breakfast. Rental car or no rental car for first trip?

 

[lorenni]

If you were all adults I would say no rental car as then someone would always have to be the DD at dinner or if you go out. But you'll have a 5 year old with you so I'm assuming sobriety is the order of the day!

The only time we got a rental was when we did a split stay at Vero Beach. All other trips we have relied on Disney transportation. There have been issues, but overall it's reliable and you're essentially already paying for it if you're staying onsite.

If you stay offsite you'll have to figure the cost of a rental car into your budget. And you'd need to bring a car seat/booster seat.

 

[imthemamahere]

We rent a car every Disney trip. Did it when it was just the 2 of us (me + then-boyfriend/now-husband), still do it now with our 6 year old son in tow. We find that it's so much easier to do things on our own schedule, not having to wait for buses to pull up, load, and then unload along the way. We also aren't sharing our transportation with dozens of tired, cranky people at the end of the day - nor are we making anyone else deal with us when we're tired and cranky! We also like eating meals at some of the restaurants at resorts around the World - that's so much easier to do when you aren't reliant on Disney transportation. For us, it makes sense.

For others, well, there are plenty who love the Disney bus system. YMMV.

 

[halfpintpeggy]

We would never go without renting a car, relying on public transportation that's usually over crowded can be really frustrating. Especially if you're trying to get to an ADR!

 

[kboo]

I would stay onsite and no rental car. If you are truly in a hurry, you can always take a taxi from your resort instead of waiting for the bus. The few times we needed to do this did not add up to the cost of a car rental. At the deluxe hotels you can usually sleep up to 5 in a room, so 2 connecting or nearby rooms would really give you a lot of space. And the deluxe rooms (not sure if mods have this too?) all have hot water/coffee makers and mini fridges. So for breakfast we packed instant oatmeal packs and often had cereal and milk in the AM. Also, if you rent DVC points you will NOT have daily housekeeping (but if you rent villa through Disney you will get daily housekeeping). OTOH, you'll probably have a washer/dryer too. So consider ages and personalities of your daughter and nieces - whether washer dryer in your unit and kitchen are worth it. FWIW last time we were at BWV in a 1BR and I used the stove once to heat up leftover pizza and the microwave a few times to heat up lunch from dinner leftovers. Not sure if it would have been worth it had we paid full price - we had rented a studio and were upgraded, and the rate for the studio was less than for any deluxe hotel rooms, so we got a great deal.

This upcoming trip we are staying in a 2BR but we'll have my parents, sis and her partner, and 3 kids, a 5 yo and 2 infants. So we need the space and washer dryer.