HELP!! ASMU or Offsite??

[Emme]

Here is the scenario. The group is me, dh, and 23 year old ds. We are on a short trip 5 days so we will only really be sleeping and showering at the rooms. We have a suite booked at Quality Suites Palm Pkwy (near DTD, great reviews) for a total of $363.49 for 5 nights. Full breakfast for all, suite with kitchen, and ds can sleep on pullout in living room and we have a king bedroom. I also received a pin and can get ASMU for $453 for 5 nights. Not much difference in price once you factor in parking. I really wanted POFQ but it is not available for our dates and we really DON'T prefer any other mod.

So help me please. I am so torn. Any and all advice/suggestions would be welcomed!

The pros of onsite is;
*Dining Plan
* Transportation
*Disneyness of property
Cons of onsite
*Small room size
*no breakfast/kitchen/privacy
*Very spread out resort

Pros of offsite;
*breakfast/Fridge/privacy
*More room with 3 adults
Cons;
*driving everyday
*no dining plan

OK give me your opinion. Thanks

 

[HM]

Keep the reservation you have. Your pros well outwiegh your cons to me. More room and separate sleeping and free breakfast are big winners to me. Even with having to pay for parking, I think you'll come out ahead. And without a dining plan, you're able to just eat what you want, not what's on the plan.

 

[em6668]

If you enjoy the dining plan, having someone do the driving for you and potentially spending more time in the parks due to Extra Magic Hours then my vote is for onsite. If that really doesn't matter to you it should be fine for you to stay offsite.

 

[Emme]

Ok anyone else care to evaluate this... I am sooo undecided

 

[bgirl29]

Will you always want to spend the same amount of time in the parks? I would think the ability for you to use disney transportation if you ever decide to split up would be worth having less space in the hotel room.

 

[catra121]

On site...on site...on site. This will always and forever be my choice now that I have stayed onsite as an adult. The conveniences, lack of stress, etc all FAR outway any benefits of staying off site. As a child I never knew the difference because I never paid for anything, had to do any driving, etc. As an adult wanting to enjoy every second of my disney trip...on site all the way baby.

 

[Havana]

Have you ever stayed offsite before? There is something to be said for being in the disney bubble 24/7. We tried offsite for a few trips and it really takes away from our entire experience. We don't want to see the outside world while we are there. That includes outside billboards, business offices, etc.

 

[edk35]

Have you tried POP. We have ONLY stayed ONE night at a value. IT was Thanksgiving night 08 in the family suite at ASMU. We didn't like anything about the experience. I have older kids too, and I would PICK more space over staying at ASMU. However...if you want the transportation and are really only showering and sleeping...I would pick POP over ASMU. To me Pop seems a little "nicer" especially the food court/main. bldg. Have you tried booking a mod through a travel agency. People are always talking about how they get good rates for Disney resorts going through a travel agency online. GOOD LUCK.

 

[Emme]

Have you tried POP. We have ONLY stayed ONE night at a value. IT was Thanksgiving night 08 in the family suite at ASMU. We didn't like anything about the experience. I have older kids too, and I would PICK more space over staying at ASMU. However...if you want the transportation and are really only showering and sleeping...I would pick POP over ASMU. To me Pop seems a little "nicer" especially the food court/main. bldg. Have you tried booking a mod through a travel agency. People are always talking about how they get good rates for Disney resorts going through a travel agency online. GOOD LUCK.

Yes, I tried POP but no availability there either I can't imagine a travel agent would have better rates than a PIN code but maybe

 

[edk35]

Yes, I tried POP but no availability there either I can't imagine a travel agent would have better rates than a PIN code but maybe

Well someone on one of these resort threads mentioned that they got a better deal booking online and not through Disney. Another person posted that these travel agencies buy up blocks of rooms and they are usually cheaper than going through Disney. NOW I have no idea how much you got with your pin code though. I have never gotten one one of those. However it seems anymore that Disney always has specials going on. Did you try any of those.


We stayed ONE night at Buena Vista Suites this summer. We drove to Disney and we got in after 9:00 so we booked our first night there. IT was a suite. You walk in and there is a small living room area/tv with a small fridge/sink/microwave. Then the bathroom then two queen beds. It was nice and very affordable. They also have free shuttle service to the parks. If you check www.mouseforless.com they usually have special codes to get a discount. IT had a free breakfast bar too. It was very close to DTD. We could see the hot air balloon from our window. You might want to investigate some more to see what else you can find. Feel free to PM me.

 

[edk35]

Yes, I tried POP but no availability there either I can't imagine a travel agent would have better rates than a PIN code but maybe

http://www.mousesavers.com/preferred.html

 

[maxiesmom]

For a short trip, I say on-site definately wins. Being on-site gives you the ability to split up if more easily. If someone wants to sleep in, they can, and just hop on a bus and meet you at the parks later. One person wants to go back for a nap? No problem, just hop on the bus.

Btw, the All Star Music is not that spread out. And as far as the Value resorts go, it is the only one that shows movies by the pool at night. I found swimming and watching a Disney movie a great way to end the day.

I have done both on and off site trips, and I would have no problem staying off site in the future. But for a shortish trip where you plan on being in the parks almost all of the time, on site is definately the way to go.

 

[willowsnn3]

Have you tried POP. We have ONLY stayed ONE night at a value. IT was Thanksgiving night 08 in the family suite at ASMU. We didn't like anything about the experience. I have older kids too, and I would PICK more space over staying at ASMU. However...if you want the transportation and are really only showering and sleeping...I would pick POP over ASMU. To me Pop seems a little "nicer" especially the food court/main. bldg. Have you tried booking a mod through a travel agency. People are always talking about how they get good rates for Disney resorts going through a travel agency online. GOOD LUCK.

This exactly. We always stay onsite but would stay offsite before I would choose ASMU. Love POP!!!

 

[catra121]

There are so many options out there. Travel agents, online travel sites, etc...it's a lot to take in. Just between your original 2 choices in the OP without confusing things...I still say ON SITE all the way.

If you're considering looking at all these other options just to stay on site and get a good deal...then it seems to me you want to stay on site more than off site. Stay on site. The values are fine for sleeping and showering and definitely have that "Disney" feel. And approach it as something "new"...a fun new experience and take things as they come.

If you are convinced that a value would just be AWFUL then you'll go in with preconceived notions that it will be bad and you won't enjoy it. In that case, stay off site. But I don't think that's what you REALLY want to do.

ON SITE is the way to go!

 

[3pletprincesses]

I would stay onsite. To me, it's a must right now. I love it. Have you tried POR maybe they have room. We went last fall and loved it.

 

[maxiesmom]

This exactly. We always stay onsite but would stay offsite before I would choose ASMU. Love POP!!!

Ok, I have to ask, why? What is so different between the Pop and the Music? I'm assuming you have stayed at both to make such a statement.

I haven't stayed at the Pop, but I can't imagine what the big difference would be. Both are value resorts. Both are serviced by only busses. Sometimes the All Star Resorts share a bus, but they each have their own way more than they share. All value resorts have food courts but no sit down restaurant.

I have trouble seeing what could be so different between the Pop and the Music to make one a fabulous resort, and one ranked beneath staying off site. What did you find so wrong with the Music?

 

[willowsnn3]

Ok, I have to ask, why? What is so different between the Pop and the Music? I'm assuming you have stayed at both to make such a statement.

I haven't stayed at the Pop, but I can't imagine what the big difference would be. Both are value resorts. Both are serviced by only busses. Sometimes the All Star Resorts share a bus, but they each have their own way more than they share. All value resorts have food courts but no sit down restaurant.

I have trouble seeing what could be so different between the Pop and the Music to make one a fabulous resort, and one ranked beneath staying off site. What did you find so wrong with the Music?

Ok, keep in mind that this was just my family's take on ASMU. I've read where others have stayed there and loved it. We always drive so we don't worry about the bus service. The room was clean & mousekeeping prompt with requests for more towels. We didn't book preferred so were placed back in the netherlands, lol. The one visit to the gift shop we listened to 2 cm's arguing with their supervisor about when they were going to break & lunch. Then found out we couldn't get a merchandise discount with our AP there. Profanity etched into the sidewalk in front of the giant boots at our building. I might not have noticed but the 8yr old sure did. I guess I just love the way POP sparkles and well just 'pops'. We really even preferred POP over CBR & POR. The main building at POP just seems larger than life compared to ASMU which in comparison seemed dinky & outdated. And POP is usually a few dollars cheaper, lol. We are working on staying at all the WDW resorts at least once but right now POP is second only to CR.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I would say stay onsite, but in some ways that is not fair since I have only stayed onsite at WDW! But for us, Magical Express, EMH, being able to let our teenagers go back and forth alone, the DDP availabilty and just that wonderful Disney customer service is what draws us in time and again. I also just enjoy not having to deal with the real world. Heck, even just going offsite to eat or grocery shop depresses me when we do that!

As for Pop vs. Music, hmmm, not sure why ASMU is getting some heat on this thread but we all have our views so I respect that. From my viewpoint, having stayed at Pop four times and Music four times, I would not lose one for the other if the deal was good! Pop is actually larger than Music however, Music is laid out differently than Pop or the other two All Stars. Those are all laid out a bit more like a circle, with the food court not too far from anything. Music's sections are laid out one right after the other. So if you do get Country Fair, you can be about 5-8 minutes from the main area depending on how fast you walk Country Fair is the furthest out section. Pop can be a dollar or two cheaper because its tax is slightly less because its in a different county than the All Stars.

My biggest gripe with Pop is that the resort is too large for just one food court. Each All Star has its own food court, and each All Star has roughly 1900 rooms. So that is 1900 rooms per food court. Pop has 2880 rooms all using one food court and one bus stop. The food court is great (we love the food) but it just gets mobbed. Pop does have a lake which is great, it makes it feel a bit more like a mod since it has that feature. I love the rooms that face the lake, they are quiet and its just a nice feature to enjoy.

I think Music has prettier grounds, we enjoy the poolside movies and we enjoy having both Sports and Movies a short walk away. Each All Star food court is just a bit different so its fun to have three of them to try out.

The All Stars do share busses sometimes, but not all the time. Pop doesn't share, good thing with 2880 rooms, that would be nightmare! The All Stars never share in the early mornings or at park closing. When we take our midday breaks we always share but its not a big deal, the bus isn't crowded and the shared route takes just a very few minutes.

I have posted these pics twice on other threads today and yesterday, I'll post them again. These are of Music, just exterior shots and I think they show how nice the resort is. I have never seenn graffiti or encountered rude cm's, I am thinking that graffiti was gotten off very quickly. I do think Music has lovely grounds and dh and I enjoyed a lot of down time at the resort in the afternoons. We love the quiet pool and its in my opinion more ambiance and landscaping than Pop's quiet pools. Anyway, here are some photos, I do want to add we love Pop too but I have these Music photos handy and postable so here goes!

This was what we saw each time we left our room in the Jazz Inn section:

Ariel statue at quiet pool:

This is a nice little shaded picnic area back near Country Fair:

The fountain area in front of Jazz Inn:

Some of the shots around the resort:

 

[J'aime Paris]

We stayed offsite once. My DH had a FREE trip through work. We stayed at a wonderful resort. That being said, I will NEVER stay offsite again. We live far away, so when we're at Disney, it's Disneymania 24/7!