First WDW vacation

[princessap]

We are planning on taking our two girls to WDW next April for 7 nights and trying to decide whether to stay onsite or offsite....any good recommendations from those who have done it?? the girls will both be under 3! thanks...I cannot seem to decide!

 

[Sgt Mickey]

It may cost a little more but I think onsite for sure. It is so totally worth it.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

We prefer onsite. Everytime we go we think, hmmm.....maybe offsite next time? Then we see the rush of people waiting for the trams or boats to the parking lot and say NO WAY! Our kids are young too so we prefer to stay at a resport that is either on the monorail line or has boat transportation. We love the Poly. The Wilderness Lodge is also great. They are both very relaxing and yet fun for the kids.

We also love the Yacht Club because the pool is awesome! Your kids are a good age for it because they will actually be able to stand in most of it so you are not chained to the kiddie pool or perseverating making sure nobody is under water. We tried it for the first time last trip. It was great.

If you are looking for more of a budget I would suggest the POP Century. You only have 2 kids so transportation is easy. The buses there are quick to come and plentiful. They have a great food court and the pools are so much fun! We loved the Goofy Fountains. If we didn't have to rent 2 rooms there we would stay there again.

If you have any other questions ask away!

 

[princessap]

Thanks for the advice...how old are your kids??
I have been told not to spend lots because they won't remember it but I want it to be amazing for them! Do you get a villa or just one room?? we have looked at wildnerness lodge but I would love to be on the monorail if possible....who do you book through?? trying to get the best deal!

 

[Darcy03231]

I've done both and like both for different reasons.

Onsite -

Pros: Have the convenience of WDW transportation, don't have to rent a car/drive, have EMH hours, and are completely immersed in the Disney experience. Depending on when you go, you may get free dining.

Cons: You are 2 adults and 2 children in one small hotel room, you have to eat all your meals on-site, you have to wait for the buses, rooms are more expensive on-site than off.

Offsite (we rent a vacation home):

Pros: Much more room to spread out, own pool, full kitchen, washer, dryer, game room, etc., usually much less expensive than staying on-site (last time we rented a 5 bedroom/3 bath private pool home for $700/wk including all taxes and fees), we have our own car so we can eat whereever we want and aren't tied to the WDW bus schedule. We also save some money by eating some meals in. Also, with having your own car its easier to load and unload the kids/strollers. I like being able to get up in the morning, start the coffee, get my shower and get dressed before getting the kids up, having breakfast in the house and then getting to the parks. The kids also like having the pool all to themselves.

Cons: You have to rent a car which is an additional expense and pay to park. You don't have EMH.

As far as the driving time goes, unless you stay in a monorail resort, I've found I can drive from the rental house, park and get to the park gates in about the same time it takes to wait for the bus, get loaded and get to the gates. For me, I've also found that its just as easy to go back and forth to the rental house and the parks as it is to go to and from the resorts/parks.

Generally, if there are just two of us traveling we stay on-site. Anymore than that we stay off-site. There are three of us going in December and we opted to stay on-site as I got a free dining PIN. If it hadn't been for that we most likely would have rented a house again.

 

[mrstomrice]

Here's my adivce! Stay at Pop! The pools and Goofy fountains are perfect for that age! It is a very nice hotel for the price and all you need for a trip to Disney. If you want to splurge for a night, stay your last night at a nice resort. We did this 2 weeks ago. We stayed at Sports for the week and then switched to the Beach Club for 1 night. We used this day to relax and enjoy the pool, had a quick visit to DTD, which was wonderful! We were lucky to be able to check in at 8 am and we had a late check out at 1 pm the next day, so we were able to make the most of the day. You are not in your hotel long enough across a week to make an expensive hotel worth it, if saving money is your goal.

 

[kehlyrsmom]

Definately on site. If you want to stay within a budget stay at a value resort 2 out of 4 times have been at a vaule - the other two we had received a generous amount of pixie dust and received a free upgrade to SSR. Take breaks in the afternoon - go back to the hotel swim take a nap whatever. Also we do rent a car it does add a little money to the trip but cuts out the lines for the bus. If you watch mousesavers.com you can find some good deals on a rental car.

 

[princessap]

darcy....where did you stay offsite, if you don't mind me asking?? the places I have priced out cost around the same as onsite, thanks!

 

[live4christp1]

The only place we have stayed onsite is Shades of Green which is for military, spent 3 nights there this year for the first time. It was nice.

All our other trips we have stayed offsite........1st trip 5 nights at Days Inn Suites on 192......it was okay.....the room where big, had a small kitchen but a little run down. I hear it's worse now.

Then I found a site called redweek.com. That's were people who own timeshares but aren't using them (or use bonus weeks) rent them out to other people. You have to look around to find good deals and it cost $9.95 to join the site for a year. We have stayed at Westgate Vacation Villas or Westgate Town Center ever since for way less than what we would have paid for a hotel room. Even got a 3 bedroom unit that slept 10 for a week at $500 and took my mom, dad & brother and we split the cost. So you can find some great deals. I like having the extra space.

We do drive of course and end up paying for parking but I prefer to have my own wheels rather than wait for buses.

 

[la79al]

We stayed offsite our first trip and onsite since then. With 2 small kiddos, I would definitely stay onsite. If you have to go back to the room for naps it is a lot easier and faster. EMH gives you the option of hitting the parks earlier (I have an early riser so I am up anyways...) or staying later if the girls let you. My DH loves the DDP because it makes the trip so much like an all-inclusive. And no, the kids will not remember it, but you will get some really cute pictures to show them later if you stay onsite, surrounded by Disney 24/7.

 

[Darcy03231]

darcy....where did you stay offsite, if you don't mind me asking?? the places I have priced out cost around the same as onsite, thanks!

This is the home we stayed at:

http://www.vacationrentals.com/vacation-rentals/32411.html

Its in Clermont and very convenient to the parks. I had originally rented another home and it fell through (the owners decided to do a long term rental about 8 weeks before we were to arrive). I inquired on several properties and this one came back with $700/wk including all taxes. We needed something for two weeks and I was concerned, but there were a lot of homes that had availability for our dates. I emailed owners asking for their best price for the two weeks. All of them came back with less than their listed price, but this house fit our needs the best.