Help! How much time do you spend in your room?

[Beth Cat]

I may also post this in the orlando section, as we are still undecided. We are traveling to Disney on June 28 with a 3 year old and a 6 year old. As it stands we are staying off site (Doubletree DTD), because of the larger room sizes -- separate bedroom area. Now I'm getting anxious again and thinking about booking the Contemporary, if possible. We just can't figure out if the trade off with the room size is worth the extra money to stay on site.
If we change, we will also have to change our plans for meals, etc...
Can anyone help? How much time is spent in rooms - when traveling with young children?
Thanks,
Beth

 

[minnie61650]

I may also post this in the orlando section, as we are still undecided. We are traveling to Disney on June 28 with a 3 year old and a 6 year old. As it stands we are staying off site (Doubletree DTD), because of the larger room sizes -- separate bedroom area. Now I'm getting anxious again and thinking about booking the Contemporary, if possible. We just can't figure out if the trade off with the room size is worth the extra money to stay on site.
If we change, we will also have to change our plans for meals, etc...
Can anyone help? How much time is spent in rooms - when traveling with young children?
Thanks,
Beth

Have you thought about staying at the New Family Suites at All Star Music?

Disney's value and mod resorts are a total bargain. You get so many perks (Disney themeing, Disney transportation, and EMH)
Any of Disney's resort guests (even those staying at a value or mod) are allowed to shop, dine, use the transportation or spa facilities at any of the Disney Resorts. (Of course pool hopping is not allowed.)


Disney does charge a premium price for their Deluxe resorts.
Deluxe guests are paying for location and amenities not for stellar customer service.
Many guests are disappointed because they think the GF is a 5 star hotel.
They expect the service of a 5 star and are disappointed when their expectations are not met.
It is in no way near a 5 star hotel even though it costs as much as many 5 star hotels.
The GF is rated 4 diamonds by AAA but most sites rate it as 3 and a half.
The Poly and CR are usually considered 3 star hotels.

I love the All Star resorts.
I am 55 years old and travel several times a year. I often stay at 4 star hotels.
Disney's deluxe and and mod resorts are just another hotel/motel room to me, but the theming at the All Stars is pure Disney and that is where I want to be.


All Star Music is my favorite. It is quieter because more couples stay there. I love staying at the Calypso building. It is closer to the pool, food court and bus stop.

Here is a site with a map of All Star Sports and All Star Music.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmap.htm
Scroll down. All Star Music is at the bottom of the page.
The Calypso buildings at All Star Music are #1 and #10 are nearest to the food court and bus stop.

The buses are wonderful.

Bus rides are quite short from the ALL Stars according to PassPorter.com

It only takes 10 minutes to get to Epcot, MGM and AK from All Stars.
MK is 20 min away. That's the same amount of time it takes on the monorail from the Contemporary.

When staying at the All Stars you can use any of the All Star pools.That means 3 main pools ,3 quiet pools and 3 kiddie pools to chose from.

The All Star Movie Fantasia pool has Mickey.

The Calypso pool at ASMU has Donald Duck.

And the Surfs up pool at All Star Sports has giant surf boards.

Here are a few pool photos.

All Star Sports pool.

All Star Music Donald pool.

All Star Movies Mickey Pool.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Here is some info about the New Family Suites:
the suites are going for:

Value season $169
Regular season $209
Peak season $239
Holiday season $259

A little info:

New Family Suites at All Star Music Resort

Several rooms at Disney’s All-Star Music Resort are getting an extreme makeover. They are being restructured to house the new Disney’s All-Star Resort Family Suites, set to open June 4, 2006.

The new family suites will offer an affordable and convenient option for larger families with the amenities of a studio apartment.

Guests will enjoy the whimsical music-themed details, along with modest rates averaging $204, based on season. Most rooms sleep a family of six. There is a limited amount of rooms available.

Families can be together in the suite while enjoying separate sleeping areas with added privacy. Having two bathrooms will not only save time, but makes getting ready easier for the whole family. Plus, extra amenities like a microwave enable guests to prepare warm snacks and meals. With the extra room, guests can relax and recount the memories of the day before falling off to a goodnight’s sleep.

52 Family Suites located in the Jazz Inn building
(192 suites upon completion located in Calypso and Jazz Inn buildings)

-Sleep up to 6 (plus one child under age 3 in a Pak-n-Play crib)
-Studio amenities and separate sleeping areas giving more privacy than a standard room.
-Queen bed, full-size pullout sofa, convertible ottoman & chair sleepers (4 separate sleepers)
-Private master bedroom and family room have 27” flat CRT TV and high speed internet access.
-Kitchenette with microwave, small refrigerator (4.3 cu. ft) and coffee pot
-Two-full bathrooms

Here is the layout:

Here are some photos from the DIS resort website:

For more info check out my New Family Suites FAQ thread on this resorts board:


http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1072409

Have fun at Disney!

 

[Disney5Mom]

We go back to our hotel every day in the afternoon from 12-5 to swim and rest.That's why we find on-site works well for us (although we have yet to try off-site )

 

[wercruzin]

We just got back from CSR with a 7 year old and a 18 month old.. It was great to be able to hop back to the room, when the kids get cranky..

To answer your question directly.. we left the room about 8 in the morning.. returned about 3, then left again about 5 back in at 9 or 10

HTH

 

[Atchley]

Staying on site is worth the money. I really don't think that the size of the room will matter that much more. The convinence of being at Disney 24/7 is great and you are surrounded by that Disney feeling all the time. Last time we stayed we didn't get into our car from the time we got there until we left. We saved a bundle in parking alone. I think that you would really love staying on site. Once you stay on site you'll go stay out again!!

 

[Pumbaa_]

To get from your hotel to the parks driving takes time. At Disney, time is money. Leaving the parks with all the other cars to drive offsite is not a magical way to end the evening.

We do not have kids, but we spend time in our room. We like to leave the parks in the heat of the day and rest. I like the convenience of hopping a bus and getting dropped at my resort and not worrying about where did I park the car, traffic, the outside world.

Staying inside Disney is staying in a very insular world. You really don't deal with the real life aspect like you do when you stay off site.

If you have little one, (or even older ones) it is nice to be able to hop back to your resort and take a rest.

 

[MrShiny]

It is very nice to hop, and the theme of the Disney hotels is great. Do look into the new All Star suites and renting DVC points.

That being said, DoubleTree DTD is nice. Lots of kids activities - they even get their own check in desk. If you have a car, it won't take that much time to get back to the room.

The hotels that would be faster are the monorail hotels and WL (from MK) and the Epcot lake area hotels from Epcot or MGM.

You'll want to nap and/or go swimming in the middle of the day with kids that age, so you might end up spending a bit of time in the room. A room with some kitchen facilities (like DTDTD or DVC) will allow you to do breakfast in the room too, which is a huge savings.

 

[TiggerandBelleFanMom]

I just went to Disney for a short jaunt with my 3 year old in March. I would recommend staying on property if you can make it work financially. We took a 2+ hour nap every afternoon starting around 2 or 3. By "we," I mean the 3-year-old, Mom, and Dad! We don't all take naps at home, but

a) being at Disney is very exciting, and being excited for hours on end is tiring,
b) being excited also means that members of your party may be waking up early and may be unable to get back to sleep, thinking about the day to come (and that excited person may be YOU, not just the kids!),
c) the Florida sunshine is delightful but can also be energy-zapping.

I'm sure some of the off-property resorts are every bit as nice and more spacious, but gosh was it nice to just monorail back to the hotel! (And even with that short trip, our 3-year-old never made it back to the resort without falling asleep on the way. She fell asleep on the monorail the first day and in a cab on the way home from MGM the second day! (We took a cab because I realized she was on the verge of crashing and didn't want to deal with bus-to-monorail transfer.)

 

[eeyoreiscool]

We always stay onsite because it is great to be able to go back to the room for a little while to let our kids relax and for us to get out of the heat. We have looked at off-site hotels in the past but it seems that the prices are close enough that we would rather stay on-site somewhere.

 

[LuluLovesDisney]

It's too much hassle and wasted time to *have* to drive both ways, fight traffic and be *somewhere else* during a Disney vacation. I'm a huge fan of staying onsite. There are so many different hotels to suit different budgets and tastes, that it is very difficult to justify staying offsite. If it costs a little extra or if the room was a little smaller, it would greatly be offset by the value of staying onsite.

I like to get up and in the parks early, like w EMH.

I like to relax, knowing there's always a bus, monorail or boat ready to take me back to my room.

I like to not have to drive or park the whole vacation if I don't want to.

I like the feeling that I am *in Disney* the *whole trip* not jumping in and out.

 

[CapeCod53]

Another vote for staying on-site. On our 1st trip my kids were 3 & 6. Our last trip was to celebrate my son's 16th birthday(daughter was 19). In all those trip we have spent only 2 days straight thru in a park. We always go back to the room to rest, swim, relax. We get to parks between 8-9 am & sometimes are ready to leave before lunch, then don't return to the parks til about 4-5 pm. Esp if you want to do Illuminations at Epcot, Fantasmic at ST & Spectro Magic & Wishes at MK, you have to rest up in the middle of the day. IMHO these are all not to be missed.
No reason you have to stay at a deluxe resort. Have never stayed at the values(they didn't exist when my kids were younger) but we loved the moderate resorts POR & CBR, they have quiet pools as well as a resort themed pool, playgrounds, boat & bike rentals, etc. ALso WL & AKL have rooms with 1 queen & a set of bunk beds, we like to have a bed for everyone.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

We travel with our three kids. I would give up hotel room space anyday for onsite. The first year we went the kids were 2 1/2, 4 and 5 and it just was so nice to be able to pop back to the room for a nap/swim break in the middle of the day. Especially going in the summer I think you're much better off with a smaller room but staying onsite.

 

[imatoad]

We've always stayed onsite, it's just part of the whole experience, not to mention the convenience. Ever since Disney built the Value's, pretty much everyone can afford to stay onsite. Your thread title is "How much time do you spend in your room". Honestly, not much at all, it's Disney, you're always out doing something it seems. But we still like having a nice room nearby to go back to. The theming of onsite properties just makes it all the more Disney. Good luck with your decision.

 

[DaisyD]

I'd rather stay onsite in a smaller room then offsite any day. We have found that the more enjoyable resort, the more time spent there. At CBR we didn't want to hang out at all. Our goal every day was to get to the parks. When we started going to the Poly we ended up spending just as much time there as at the parks. I think you will enjoy the onsite resort much more then offsite and therefore stay there more.

 

[scoolover]

For me, room size would never matter. If there is a place for everyone to sleep with some comfort then good enough for me. They also need a TV and a shower but even the shower is optional. I guess that is why they made pools.

 

[laura001]

I may also post this in the orlando section, as we are still undecided. We are traveling to Disney on June 28 with a 3 year old and a 6 year old. As it stands we are staying off site (Doubletree DTD), because of the larger room sizes -- separate bedroom area. Now I'm getting anxious again and thinking about booking the Contemporary, if possible. We just can't figure out if the trade off with the room size is worth the extra money to stay on site.
If we change, we will also have to change our plans for meals, etc...
Can anyone help? How much time is spent in rooms - when traveling with young children?
Thanks,
Beth

Why not try staying at POR or POFQ? They are both great resorts and very reasonable. As far as how much time we spend in our room....well.....it would be to sleep and then shower and get going again in the morning. By the time you get back to your room, all you want to do is put your PJ's on, crawl into bed, maybe turn the tv on and fall asleep!!!! We have stayed at POR with the five of us (and my kids are older) and had NO problem!!!!

It is nicer to stay right on property.
Have a great time!

 

[FogliaFamily]

We just retuned from POR and stayed in the alligator bayou section with our 3 kids, 3, 5, 7. I slept with one, my husband one and the trundle for the other. It worked out great. The transportation worked out great. I wouldn't like to drive and park and pay for parking everyday. With the buses you are dropped off so much closer. I'd consider a moderate and stay on site. Have fun!

 

[Simba22]

last year my boyfriend and I went and stayed off-site to try and save money. That went right out the window the first day! We had to pay for a shuttle to bring us to the hotel and then back to the airport the day we left...that was $120....then we wanted to go to DTD the first night we were there....$50 ONE WAY from the hotel that advertised "minutes from Disney." Plus our hotel room, wasn't as big as they made it seem. The bathroom door opened in, but the toilet was behind the door.....and the "continental breakfast" (from 7am-8am) consisted of bagels, toast, a muffin, or cold cereal.

The night we went to MGM, we stayed for Fantasmic. The problem was that the shuttle to the parks from our hotel (and back) only makes one pick up from the park AND they didn't drop of or pick up directly from MGM....we needed to go from MGM (after Fantasmic the Disney buses were crowded to say the least, and they run every 20 minutes. Our shuttle to the hotel was going to pick us up from MK at 10:20. We got back to MK at 10:18pm and thankfully our shuttle was running later...but that was SOO stressful! Knowing that you have guaranteed transportation to and from the parks is well worth staying on-site...Not to mention that last year for 2 of us to stay off-site for a week, for just hotel and airfare, it cost us about $3500. This year, for 4 of us to stay at All Star Movies, with airfare AND 4 five-day disney tix, it cost us about $2800. And we don't have to pay for transportataion anywhere!