How realistic are taking park breaks while staying offsite?

[DCWarrior]

I am totally struggling on deciding where to stay for a trip the first week of September! One of my main concerns on staying offsite is the idea of the mid-day break. We will be traveling with a three year old and two early 60's grandmas during a hot time of year, so I know the suggested tip of going back to your rooms for naps/pool/cool down will be needed for us. But, I wonder if we stay offsite how much of a hassle that would be?? Getting from the parks back to the car, loading everyone and everything in it, driving through who knows how bad traffic and stop lights, and then re-do all that again to go back to the parks in the afternoon. It just all seems like a hassle to me, but I also weigh the cost savings in my mind!!! I mean, even if you drive to the parks, are you usually having to pile into some sort of tram/bus/monorail/boat to get between the parks and the cars? So, wouldn't it be just as easy to get on one of those anyway and have it take you straight to your on site resort?? I guess that's the difference in price of staying in either, the convenience of it?

I know some on here are very much for off site stays, so, do you go back to your condo or whatever for breaks? Is it as much of a pain as I'm thinking it is??

 

[mevelandry]

I don't think the money you'll save is worth all that trouble...

The Deluxe are amazing when you need a mid-day break but some moderates and value got great bus service too...

 

[denneg]

Honestly, if we go back in the afternoon, we tend to not go back at all. But that's my family, we tend to go back and then get lazy - and that happens on or off site! But if we are on-site, we have to go back out for our ADR's, so we do tend to get more park time in just because we have to eat! That being said, it is moderately more difficult to go back to the room if you are offsite. Not only is there the hassle of getting to the car (waiting for the Tram in the hot sun, walking to the car) and loading the stroller and all your gear, but coming back you have to do it all over again after finding a new parking space. The drive itself is the part that's fine, assuming you stay within a reasonable distance, it's nice to be guaranteed a seat and to regulate the A/C for the ride. I would suggest if it's financially possible to stay onsite to do so, just so that if one person wants to go back early, they can just jump on a bus and go back. Plus, it will be much easier for you all as a group to go back. If you are going in September, you should be able to get free dining, which helps it feel cheaper to stay onsite at least.

Just as food for though, you could rent DVC points if you wanted to get a one or two bedroom at one of the Deluxe resorts. Or a cabin at Fort Wilderness might work too, if you could figure out a sleeping configuration that would work. Just trying to think of some ways to make it more affordable for you!

 

[AveryandLilysmom]

I think the answer to your question really depends on a few different factors aside fro. Just cost. How many days is your family visiting parks? How many attractions are "must do" in each park (do you have a lengthy list or very laid back about how much you expect to do in short amounts of time)? How far from the parks are you looking at staying? Keep in mind some things are dictated by park schedules like shows at DHS.

Every family is different and needs/priorities are different, but I can honestly say that no matter how many times I hope we'll be able to take a break we never get to. And we are not "commando" style in park touring (we have been with our kids as infants and toddlers, we never expect to do everything by any means). This has been the case whether we stay on or off site, though more often we stay onsite. I think you can stay on or off site and take breaks, but don't have high expectations that you'll see and do everything. I'd also not plan a lot of ADRs as these eat up a lot of time to otherwise visit attractions unless you plan to meet a lot of characters, in which case a character lunch to get out of the 90+ degree heat is advisable/preferable to waiting in lines to meet characters and then take a break until the evening. I hope you have better luck taking breaks than my family has. I'm sure someone else can comment how they've been able to do this successfully. Best of luck and have a great trip!

 

[mikehn]

Dont kid yourself. With two grammas and a toddler, if you take a mid day break, you are done. You might even be done even if you stay onsite. People tend to way over estimate themselves. It is very easy to settle in especially if you are staying at a resort packed with amenities.

 

[Amanda999]

We have gone last week or two of August for years now, and my kids aren't even very young anymore, and we're done once we leave. I don't even buy hoppers anymore.

We go right when the park opens, then after lunch maybe 1 more ride/attraction, then off to the hotel for an "AC break," then pool, dinner, early to bed to repeat the next day.

Check out Windsor Hills. It's close to Animal Kingdom. In September you should easily be able to get a townhouse (no upstairs neighbors!) with 3 beds, 3 baths, private splash pool (12' square, 5' deep), clubhouse pool with slide and hot tub, for $100/night including tax. The drive isn't that much more of a hassle then waiting for the bus in the scorched earth that is Orlando that time of year. (If money is no object, go for the Contemporary and walk to MK and monorail to Epcot from there. Or do BC/Yacht Club. But I love having a car, and separate bedrooms for the kids, so I'm moved offsite finally.)

But, like pp said, every family is different. We have gone so many times we don't try to get 'value' from the park tickets. We just have fun for a few hours there, then done. Seems to make for a happy family vacation for us.

Good luck! How wonderful two grandmas will be joining you!

 

[Upatnoon]

I am totally struggling on deciding where to stay for a trip the first week of September! One of my main concerns on staying offsite is the idea of the mid-day break. We will be traveling with a three year old and two early 60's grandmas during a hot time of year, so I know the suggested tip of going back to your rooms for naps/pool/cool down will be needed for us. But, I wonder if we stay offsite how much of a hassle that would be?? Getting from the parks back to the car, loading everyone and everything in it, driving through who knows how bad traffic and stop lights, and then re-do all that again to go back to the parks in the afternoon. It just all seems like a hassle to me, but I also weigh the cost savings in my mind!!! I mean, even if you drive to the parks, are you usually having to pile into some sort of tram/bus/monorail/boat to get between the parks and the cars? So, wouldn't it be just as easy to get on one of those anyway and have it take you straight to your on site resort?? I guess that's the difference in price of staying in either, the convenience of it?

I know some on here are very much for off site stays, so, do you go back to your condo or whatever for breaks? Is it as much of a pain as I'm thinking it is??

No problem for us when we stay at wyndham bonnet creek.

The issue I see for many families is the high price of tickets makes them want to stay too long at the parks, and they get overtired and overheated.

If you can, get a longer stay with less park time per day and more relaxation time.

 

[DCWarrior]

Well, reading through these responses and the looking at Windsor Hill's site, I'm almost convinced on staying here!!!! It's very possible for us to not want to go back to the parks after our breaks, except for a certain night or two to go see fireworks and night parades. And the money we would save, the room to spread out, the very nice condos and houses AND they seem the closest to Disney World.

Man, you all were supposed to convince me to stay on site, but now I'm leaning toward the opposite. Hmmmmm...

 

[aubriee]

Well, reading through these responses and the looking at Windsor Hill's site, I'm almost convinced on staying here!!!! It's very possible for us to not want to go back to the parks after our breaks, except for a certain night or two to go see fireworks and night parades. And the money we would save, the room to spread out, the very nice condos and houses AND they seem the closest to Disney World.

Man, you all were supposed to convince me to stay on site, but now I'm leaning toward the opposite. Hmmmmm...

Like a previous poster we love Wyndham Bonnet Creek. It is actually inside the WDW gates and is closer to the parks than alot of the Disney owned resorts. It's like five minutes to DS and Epcot. They have multiple pools, multiple pool slides, multiple hot tubs, two lazy rivers, kids playground, a kids water play area, game room, planned kids activities, etc.

 

[Silock]

We always go back in the afternoons, but it really depends on where you stay and how long it takes to get there. Bonnet Creek is so close that it's easy to get back and then back to the park in a reasonable amount of time.

But we also go in the offseason, so I'm sure that plays a role, too.

 

[DCWarrior]

I admit, Bonnet Creek looks very nice and convenient. But, I think it's a bit out our price range. It looks like I can get a much better deal at Windsor Hills.

 

[brownhaired_girl]

No problem for us when we stay at wyndham bonnet creek.

The issue I see for many families is the high price of tickets makes them want to stay too long at the parks, and they get overtired and overheated.

If you can, get a longer stay with less park time per day and more relaxation time.

I also find that staying off site allows us to stay for more days. I travel with my 75yo mother and Down Syndrome daughter. We need to go back for breaks. I love Bonnet Creek but I think you would like the condos with the splash pool. Windsor Hills is very close and we have stayed there a few times (renting a house when we traveled with a large group).

 

[kitty2kidz]

vacationcentralflorida.com has excellent very low rates on townhouses with private splash pools (400/wk) and condos (199/wk) this September!! These are Windsor Hills rentals!!!

 

[blessedby3]

I admit, Bonnet Creek looks very nice and convenient. But, I think it's a bit out our price range. It looks like I can get a much better deal at Windsor Hills.

If you are looking at Bonnet Creeks prices from their site, then yes it will definitely be out of your price range.
We stayed there in Oct 2012 and are going back in June 2014. We have booked with Vacation Strategy both times. Another site to check is Vacation Upgrades.
You can get a free quote from either of them. We paid $837 for the week in 2012 (it was in October) and are paying $1100 a week for June (for a 2br…sleeps 8). Higher price season. It is so convenient and located right next to the Caribbean Beach resort on property.
We took breaks and often went off property for lunch at midday. We could go to Olive Garden for cheaper than counter service in the parks We will be doing that again this year

 

[kidd_freeper]

At EP, HS and AK, taking a mid-day break offsite is no problem. Driving is mostly quicker than the bus system.

At MK, it is kind of on the edge.

For parents, the midday break offsite is BETTER. You don't have to sit in a dark room with the TV on mute while the toddlers nap...you go to another room.

 

[DSLRuser]

depends on you definition of a break.

We hit a park around 9am, and are done by 1-2pm.

Go to the hotel, on or off site for a few hours.

head back to the park for shows / fireworks around 6 or 7.

So in any day we do 5 hours in a park, 5 hours away, 5 hours in a park.

I could not do any more. But then again, we go to disney for so much more than "rides".

 

[trinchick]

We're another family that found the mid-day break unsustainable, even when staying on site. Travel time is not just from park gates to your room.

You have to walk through the park with toddler and grandmas, avoiding any distractions as you go (Look! the line for HM is short; let's just ride one more time. Look! that gift shop looks great; let's peak inside).

Then you have to walk from gates to bus stop (doesn't sound long until you're dragging a hot, tired, cranky toddler and two grandmas).

Bus ride to the resort. This is when our kids generally dozed off only to have to wake them when we got to the hotel. Then, no, they weren't settling back down for a nap.

So, OK, we'll swim instead. Get everyone in bathing suits and herd out to the pool. Play for an hour, traipse back in. Then wrestle kids out of wet bathing suits and into clothes. Re-do kids' hair (dd has long hair).

Ack! We have ADRs for dinner, and we have to plan an hour commute back to the park to make the reservation. Quick! Do it all in reverse.

I wanted the break to work for us, but it just didn't. This time we're staying off site and just keeping our expectations more reasonable. I like to make rope drop most mornings, but we can leave at 3:00 or so (or after the 3:00 parade) and have more leisurely evenings. This will be with the exception of a couple of nights when we want to see fireworks, and on those days we'll plan to get to the park after lunch.

 

[Minniesgal]

We have always done them offsite or onsite. If you have a car there are many places to stay not that much further than the ?Disney resorts.

 

[thehogsters]

I admit, Bonnet Creek looks very nice and convenient. But, I think it's a bit out our price range. It looks like I can get a much better deal at Windsor Hills.

If you look a vrbo they are actually very close in price for a 2 bedroom

 

[rachelknx]

Just a note on Windsor Hills - their community pool will be undergoing renovations starting in Sept. Private townhouse pools will still be open. We almost booked there but have some non-park goers who want more to do wherever we stay.