Hi - Help, need advice

[njmousefest]

Hi, we are planning a trip to disney in late april and I think I've managed to really confuse myself. It will be me, my wife, 2 kids (age 3 and 20 months at time of trip) and two of the kids' grandparents. I haven't been to disney since '92, my wife's last time was '96, so I'm guess a little bit has changed.

I guess our first question is staying on or offsite? If looking at options, we'd need to focus on the 3 bedroom treehouse villa at saratoga, or offsite, plenty of options (wyndham bonnet creek). How inconvenient is it staying off site, parking and taking the tram/monorail/boat vs. the resort buses (and lugging strollers etc...) from the property? We'll probably be going back to the resort mid day for some downtime and little one's nap, then back to the park for dinner and nighttime activities.

I think this is our first hurdle...any advise would be appreciated.

 

[MOpGrad2013]

Welcome to the Dis!

You will receive quite a few opinions regarding the on-site/off-site convenience.

We stayed on-site in 2010..only used bus system. We did spend a lot of time waiting for the bus and of course leaving the parks before the bus. That was our first visit as a family and we were all adults and teens. I did run back to the Coronado Springs Resort (CSR) to Magic Kingdom. Transportation was on my side because the bus was waiting for me both ways.

This past summer (June 2014) we stayed off site in the Windsor Hills. We had adults and a 3 year old in the mix. Driving from the townhouse (one street over from the first big house) into the Magic Kingdom lot, through the gate and into our parking spot took about 18 minutes. We did have to wait for a break in traffic in order to make a left hand turn out of the resort, so it could have been a bit shorter.

I would have to say that leaving and using a car to get around is much definintely more convenient than going by bus, monorail...There is a small wait to get the parking tram if you aren't in one of the front parking areas that you can walk to. But, once you are loaded up, you are able to go at your pace.

The days that we left the parks and planned to go back, we tended not to re-enter. Both trips. But, I will say that we took plenty of rest times in park so we were able to open and shut down the parks on those days. Just pace yourself.

No matter what your final decisions, your family will always remember the trip.

 

[DrummerBoy523]

Hi, we are planning a trip to disney in late april and I think I've managed to really confuse myself. It will be me, my wife, 2 kids (age 3 and 20 months at time of trip) and two of the kids' grandparents. I haven't been to disney since '92, my wife's last time was '96, so I'm guess a little bit has changed.

I guess our first question is staying on or offsite? If looking at options, we'd need to focus on the 3 bedroom treehouse villa at saratoga, or offsite, plenty of options (wyndham bonnet creek). How inconvenient is it staying off site, parking and taking the tram/monorail/boat vs. the resort buses (and lugging strollers etc...) from the property? We'll probably be going back to the resort mid day for some downtime and little one's nap, then back to the park for dinner and nighttime activities.

I think this is our first hurdle...any advise would be appreciated.

I would recommend staying on site - you can get two adjoining rooms instead of a 3BR treehouse. My family of 4 and another family of 5 have done this. You'll want time away from the grandparents...believe me.

Also, we like to stay on site because of all of the perks - Extra Hours, free transportation to name a few. It may not be worth it to you - but when you stay onsite, you don't have to deal with parking - you just check-in and never use your car again.

We have been twice, both times with very young kids - the first time we went with our kids, they were 5 and 10 mos. Lugging strollers is just a way of life with an infant and we made sure to have a lightweight stroller with us (Peg Perego Aria). The second time we came to Disney, they were 7 and almost 2. We managed. It was a blast. Lots of strollers at Disney on the busses, etc. People are typically courteous to those with little ones.

Our next visit in late May will be our first visit in 4 years and first w/o a stroller!

 

[ThistleMae]

Good Morning. If you are looking for the most convenient, stress free vacation, there is nothing better than staying onsite. From the ease of booking your trip, dinning and transportation, staying at Disney can't be beat. There are numerous room choices to meet your family's needs. The grandparents may want to venture off on their own at times and you can simply meet at dinner time. Booking your favorite restaurants is so easy and fun. Relaxing at the pool in the morning or afternoon helps balance your pace at the parks. The kids may nap in the afternoon and getting back and forth can be planned with ease. You may want to consider resorts that have multiple modes of transportation, such as the monorail, boats and the buses. Of course this is one of many opinions but hopefully this helps. If you have any other question please feel free to ask!

 

[Kristina4109]

When at WDW, I ALWAYS stay on site. (At DL, I'll stay off it we're looking to save money.) If I can't afford to stay on site at WDW, I will put off our vacation until we can.