First Trip to Disney World

[mossimo81702]

Hello, I'm sure all of you have read this question that I'm going to ask a million of times...so here it goes: Where is the best place for my family stay at Disney World?

I'm coming from Michigan (GO WINGS!!!) and we plan to drive down there towards the end of February, we'll stop in Atlanta for a couple of days to see relatives, then we'd like to stay at least 3 nights in Disney, and the try to hit Lego Land (that's where my 10 year old really wants to go) for a couple of days, and then head home. It will be me, my wife, and 4 kids (2 boys ages 10 & 6 & 2 girls ages 8 & 2) and possibly my mom, so 3 adults 4 children. We're thinking about staying in the resort at Disney (because of what I read about the convenience) but the prices are outrageous. I want to stay somewhere that will be really fun for the kids and something memorable. Price is still a concern but any suggestions would be great.

BTW...I haven't been there since they were building Epcot so that's tells you how long ago that was. Just to give you a funny story, my parents and younger brother drove down to Miami for my dad's Met Life convention (he was rooking of the year) and we stopped at Disney on the way back home (also stopped at the World's Fair in Knoxville). Anyway, I was 12 and had a bad habit of always wandering off on my own with my parents always frantically looking for me. Well at Disney I wandered off, went to look back and see where my parents were and they were gone. I got scared, actually started crying, ran all over the place to find them but couldn't. I was really freaking out!!! I saw a security guard and ran up to him to tell him I was lost and that's when my parents came out of nowhere to tell the security guy that everything was okay. It turns out my parents were watching me the whole time, following me, watching me freak out and cry my eyes out...well they wanted to teach me a lesson, that was actually the last time I wandered off by myself. After that incident, I would ask/tell them were I was going, taught me a lesson.

Anyway, sorry to make this so long but that was my only recollection of Disney World. My brother was 6 and I remember him laughing at me because I was crying.

 

[ghtx]

Just to give you a funny story, my parents and younger brother drove down to Miami for my dad's Met Life convention (he was rooking of the year) and we stopped at Disney on the way back home (also stopped at the World's Fair in Knoxville). Anyway, I was 12 and had a bad habit of always wandering off on my own with my parents always frantically looking for me. Well at Disney I wandered off, went to look back and see where my parents were and they were gone. I got scared, actually started crying, ran all over the place to find them but couldn't. I was really freaking out!!! I saw a security guard and ran up to him to tell him I was lost and that's when my parents came out of nowhere to tell the security guy that everything was okay. It turns out my parents were watching me the whole time, following me, watching me freak out and cry my eyes out...well they wanted to teach me a lesson, that was actually the last time I wandered off by myself. After that incident, I would ask/tell them were I was going, taught me a lesson.

Anyway, sorry to make this so long but that was my only recollection of Disney World. My brother was 6 and I remember him laughing at me because I was crying.

My first piece of advice is to NOT try this with your own children.

 

[Postal68]

With the amount of people you have, I would say the best bang for your buck would be to rent a home. Staying on property has it's advantages, but it is great to have a home where everyone has their own bedroom/privacy and even your own pool. You can get a home very close to Disney and be to and from the parks in 15/20 minutes which is almost the same amount of time taking the bus from the resort will take. Also you can save money by not paying theme park prices for food at every meal.


We prefer off site, the rooms at Disney suck. They are overpriced Holiday inn rooms.

 

[mossimo81702]

I guess I never thought about renting a house out...do that do that for 3 nights? I've just heard people talk about how much easier it is to stay at the resort and how easy it is just to go back to the room when the kids are tired and how you have extra time to stay at the park before and after it closes (unless I heard/read wrong). The cost is the killer for me...

 

[Kleinhdr]

I would really recommend that you stay ON property. There is something just more magical about staying on property. I think the Disney's Art of Animation Resort or Port of Orleans can accommodate the size of your family and you will have the convenience and magic of being AT Disney World. It is so much nicer and less stressful to park your car and use the WDW transportation system. I think this is especially true since this is your family's first trip to the world. To each his own, but I think staying on property is the way to go!!

 

[KWithers]

We've been staying at Wyndham Bonnet Creek for a few years now. It's on Disney property, but not owned by Disney. They have 1, 2, and 3 bedroom condos with full kitchens, washer/dryer in unit, private bedrooms, etc. We have a contact that gives us unbeatable rates..I'm talking cheaper than a Value resort room. They also have a shuttle that goes to Disney. It's a bit pricey at $6/person, so we will be self-parking. It is convenient to stay at the resorts because of the transportation, but to us the cost is not worth it.

 

[mom2cgj]

You are going to get a lot of people telling you to stay offsite because...or stay onsite because... Everyone has their own opinion and will try to convince you that they are right. If cost is your biggest concern, offsite is probably going to be less expensive, especially with the number of people you have. I've never done that, so I can't help you there! If your biggest concern is convenience, you might be better off onsite. Although if you are driving anyway and not using Disney transportation, offsite might be just as convenient - depending on where you stay.

If you really want to stay on property, you might need to look at two rooms at a value for the cheapest price. You could do a family suite at Art of Animation (since one of the kids is under 3), but it might also cost more. We stayed in the Lion King suites at AoA and absolutely loved them, but they are not the cheapest!

Personally, I would stay onsite, but that's because I love the Disney "bubble". You just have to figure out what is the most important to you, and base your decision on that. Good luck, and whatever you decide you will be at Disney, so it will be Magical!

 

[raysum]

We have stayed in a house and really enjoyed it. With a large group it is your best bet. Lots of room to spread out

 

[maplevale]

I second staying on site for your first trip.

What about 2 rooms at a Value?

That give so much more flexibility in who does what and when (ie: mom and the girls can take a few hours and do all things princessy and dad and the boys can do Toy Story stuff, one parent takes the younger kids to swim and one stays with the older kids in the park). You wouldn't have that flexibility being offsite with only one vehicle.

Other places you may not have thought to save $$ .... Don't get the WaterPark or Park Hopper options (they seem to default in when I price things out).

You may save money by doing more days at Disney and only 1 at Lego Land if you are looking for a full week trip as opposed to 3 days at one and 3 days at another park.

 

[#1DopeyFan]

Always interesting to see the different opinions. I would also suggest staying ON property, but I don't particularly care for using WDW transportation. We always rent a car, I just don't like being dependent on someone else...I don't want to have to wait for a bus, I want to leave when I want to leave. Lol
You could do adjoining rooms at a Value resort and they would be plenty of room for 7 people.

 

[DisneyJillian18]

I have stayed onsite and offsite, and I will be honest with you, for both trips I came home saying THAT WAS THE BEST VACATION EVER, I LOVE DISNEY! I don't think your hotel room dictates what kind of vacation you will have. There are benefits of staying onsite; extra magic hours, not having to drive, and you are in "the Disney bubble." But if staying offsite says you a considerable amount of money, and you will have a little more leg room with a party that size, go off site. Either way, you will have a great and magical time, it's Disney after all! Have a safe drive down and have a safe and magical vacation!

 

[jimandami]

Yes, you will get a ton of opinions on on vs off site (we are on-site people all the way but totally see why people choose both options). 2 rooms at a value are probably your cheapest bet (I recommend Pop Century) but we love the AoA suites as well. As far as Legoland, if you must go, I would definitely stick to one day there. You can add a day to WDW tickets pretty cheaply.

 

[TreeSapp]

If you haven't been in years, you'll probably spend a lot of time in the parks. So your best bet is to stay off-site for the cost. You can still use a ton of the on site extras so you won't be missing too much. The rental homes are very cool, some even have game rooms and their own private pool!

 

[rwdavis2]

We have stayed on and off property. Off at All Star Vacation Homes where they have townhouses to 5-6 bedrooms homes. This will probably be the least expensive housing option and added convenience: washer/dryer, full kitchen, etc. The drive to get on property was about 10 minutes and about 10-15 at most more to get to parked at any of the parks. You will have to pay parking each day.

On property you will get free parking at the parks if you drive vs. using Disney buses (we always drive, IMHO its usually quicker). But you lose privacy by staying in hotel rooms. with 7 people you may need 2-3 rooms. allears.net has a good overview and pricing of rooms. You do get the Extra Magic Hour when staying on site but that is getting cut back and, at times, can lead to more crowds at that park on those days.

A lot has changed since Epcot was built. I was there just after as well. The hotel options are varied and many.

One more thing, you can price tickets on the WDW site and you'll see that each additional day of tickets costs less as you add each day. I think by the 6th day, they cost about $10 a day or less. It's easy to do "what if" scenarios by hitting the various buttons. Non-expiring tickets have become very expensive and not generally recommended unless you divide a ticket between 3 trips.

You are going to get a lot of different opinions. Keep doing some research. Go buy the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. It is sort of our bible for park info here. Also easywdw.com is another superb source for information. Don't try to absorb all the info in a day. Let it sink in for a while.

 

[richmo]

I'd look into offsite as well. Take a look at vacationcentralflorida.com. There's also bigger places available (see the post right before mine). But, remember, on vs. off is a personal decision.

I'd just stay in one place and make that my hub. I believe Legoland is only 45 minutes or so from Disney area and my guess is one day there will be enough. Onsite or off, you WILL need as much time as you can get at Disney World. The enormity of it can be overwhelming to a newbie.

Have fun!

 

[rwdavis2]

If you haven't been in years, you'll probably spend a lot of time in the parks. So your best bet is to stay off-site for the cost. You can still use a ton of the on site extras so you won't be missing too much. The rental homes are very cool, some even have game rooms and their own private pool!

I agree. For that many people having a house to retreat to at night is far more relaxing than a hotel room. Jamming 4 kids to a hotel room and 3 adults in another is hardly a restful thing to do.

We stayed over in Windsor Hills and there was a grocery store right at the entrance to the community. So we were able to get breakfast food, snacks, water, etc right there. We ate breakfast at the house and then went to the parks. Stayed until closing.

Find a map of the area and take a look.

 

[awilliams4]

Consider renting points to get larger DVC Villa accomodations. That is a LONG way to go to Disney to not stay on Disney's property. I would also suggest you just do Disney for 5 days instead of for 3 days and trying Legoland for a 'couple' days.

There is way more than enough to do at WDW and after being in the car that long with that many people the last thing I would want to do is jump in the car every day to go anywhere including the WDW parks or Legoland.

 

[awilliams4]

I agree. For that many people having a house to retreat to at night is far more relaxing than a hotel room. Jamming 4 kids to a hotel room and 3 adults in another is hardly a restful thing to do.

We stayed over in Windsor Hills and there was a grocery store right at the entrance to the community. So we were able to get breakfast food, snacks, water, etc right there. We ate breakfast at the house and then went to the parks. Stayed until closing.

Find a map of the area and take a look.

I agree that I would not do a hotel room. But I would not stay off site. After 20-30 hours in the car both ways, I wouldn't want to be going back and forth to the parks another 1-2 hours while there as well.

I would get a 2 bedroom at OKW. It sleeps 9.

 

[f15robyn]

Just another voice to mention that you do not need 3 days at Legoland.

My husband and I are huge Lego fans and went to the park in spring of 2012. Although we didn't ride some of the rides (as many of them are kid sized only), we did stand and look at all of them because we were just in awe of all of the Lego structures, decorations, etc. We could have ridden in pretty much the same amount of time we spent enjoying the Legos. We also watched the water show, some of the movies and spent a TON of time wandering Miniland USA.

One day was plenty.

 

[OneMoreTry]

You will not see everything you want to at WDW in 3 days -- even in 5 days. If your son is set on LegoLand, then the most I would spend there is one day. But don't be surprised if you get there and he changes his mind and wants to spend the whole time at WDW. Look at the WDW web site with him and review all the possibilities. Or you can order one of the free DVD's.

If you can afford to stay on property at WDW, then definitely do it. If cost is a big factor, then stay at a Value resort. (If cost weren't a factor then, without doubt, staying at a monorail resort is the way to go.)

Somebody mentioned staying in a 2 BR condo at OKW (Old Key West) -- that is a fantastic idea, but expensive. However, it really is much better to stay in a condo than a motel room with a lot of kids. (We did that once, then bought into DVC (Disney Vacation Club) at OKW because we visit frequently -- now we only stay in the condos.) If you're gonna try OKW then look into renting points -- it will be cheaper than paying cash.

If you do decide to spend the money on a condo, consider spending even a little more to stay at one of the DVC resorts on the monorail -- you can walk to Magic Kingdom from Bay Lake Towers which is really nice at the end of the day when thousands of people are clamoring to get on the buses or the monorail.