I want to stay onsite, how do I convince dh?

[LeahA]

Help!

I want to stay onsite! I never have! I get so bummed reading all the posts about the resorts, but, my dh is an accountant and doesn't want to spend the extra dollars! How do I convince him?

We are a family of 4, we have 2 boys, ages 2 and 5. We have stayed at the:
Comfort Suites-1999
Wyndham Palace Priceline-2000
Hawthorne Suites-2001
Hilton DD Priceline-2002

Help! Help! Help! I want to be in the "in" crowd!

Leah

 

[ead79]

Perhaps you could stress the convenience of staying at a Disney owned resort, particularly when traveling with two young children. It's wonderful to leave your car behind and use Disney's transportation system, which is quite efficient.

 

[DisneyFan79]

Tell him to splurge and live a little!! haha
Actually I think some of the hotels you have listed can be just as pricey as some on property. You could at least go for the value resorts and it wouldn't break the bank too bad. The transportation and him not having to drive the whole time your on vacation might attract him. If not, tell him you have already made the reservation and thats final!!haha

 

[gonga]

Just book it, wait for codes and just go and have fun. Life is too short - You can always do what I do......make the arrangements you want and tell him it was a different price than what you paid. Save money every week and pay with a cashiers check when amount is due (no tell tale signs of what you actually paid). Voila every one is happy

 

[DisneyKidds]

It is hard to put it into a tangible explanation that an accountant type would easily get - I know - I am one .

IMHO, there is just something different about staying "on property". We have stayed both on and off property, and we find the difference obvious.

When you stay off property, you go to the parks and enter the Magical world of Disney. Then you leave the parks and go back to your non-Disney hotel, and feel like you are leaving Disney and going someplace else. Yes, your hotel might be nice, but it is just a hotel. Yes, it might be close to Disney, but it isn't Disney.

When you stay on site, after you leave the parks you never leave the Magical world of Disney. The on property resorts are kind of an extension of the parks. You never feel like you are leaving Disney, you are just going someplace different within Disney. That Magical feeling you get is with you 24/7 during your vacation.

When we stay at a Disney resort we feel like we are vacation in WDW. When we stay off site we feel like we are vacationing in Orlando and visiting the WDW parks. A subtle difference, but one you probably need to experience to know if it will make a difference to you.

Let me try it this way. We have stayed off site at the Courtyard in Downtown Disney. When we leave the parks and go back to the hotel, unless we leave the hotel the evening is over. The hotel is nice, and there is a pool, but there isn't much to do. You can't walk around the hotel property and soak in atmosphere. You can't do much. Contrast that with staying at an Epcot resort for example. You go back to your hotel and you have a world of options available to you. You could walk around your resort as the grounds will be beautiful and rather extensive. The pools will be incredible. You have many restaurants to choose from - all within walking distance. You could walk over to the Boardwalk or check out the other Epcot resorts. All this while you are still immersed in the Magic of being IN Disney. Even if you stay at a moderate or the values, the resort grounds are much more extensive than a typical off site hotel and the themeing blows off site hotels away.

The difficult thing in all this is putting a value on the feeling you get, the extension of the Disney magic throughout every waking minute of your vacation. That is the hard part for the accountant. That is where the tangible benefits come into play. Ultimate park hopper passes that are good for your length of stay might provide you a dollars and cents benefit. Being able to take advantage of the Extra Magic Hour daily at one of the parks is worth something as well. Perhaps being able to take advantage of an E-night if there is one.

See if you can get him to agree just once - and expeince the difference. Maybe you don't notice one and you find you were just as happy off site, or maybe you do and your already wonderful vacations get even better. Just to find out is worth the investment for one trip.

 

[josierac]

You may also want to add that in addition to not having a car rental (you can use the amount towards a room instead) you also don't have to pay a daily parking fee for the parks.

You could use what it would cost you for those 2 things alone into the price of an onsite disney hotel.

You can also try the Swan/Dolphin that while not disney owned they are on disney property and you can check for Entertainment book discounts and many others

 

[Yzma and Kronk]

LeahA - I have one of those DH's too....my problem is he has stayed on site a few times, and still doesn't get it (thanks DisneyKidds - I printed off your response for him to read)
My advise is choose your resort carefully!
From my experience if you have to take "longish" rides back to your resort via Disney Trans - your DH may think it is the same as staying offsite. My DH doesn't like "public busses" so I have to be aware of that when choosing a resort.
Try to find out your DH's "Disney Hot Buttons" - which park he likes the best, maybe try to stay at a resort nearby. We stayed at Epcot resort for the first time, and DH liked it because Epcot is his Fav.
Try to find the activities your DH likes to do and pick your resort that has as many of those as possible. For example, my DH spent hours (!) on the Watermice at CR once and had a ball. I may be able to convince him to stay at a property with water activites again.
Try to stay at resort that makes the transport of your small children really easy. Point out hassle of putting tired kids in car seats, etc. etc. back to offsite hotel. It's much easier to just put them on monorail/bus and stroller them to the hotel.
Finally - try to go during value season, and get a code rate. You can then show him a price comparision of what the "rack" rate is vs. your rate. (This kind of worked for me....) Have him look at mousesavers.com as well to see savings.
One other point - I don't know what your food budget is like and what you have done on previous trips, but be aware it is somewhat expensive to stay on site and eat at Disney Restaurants. (This is one of the things that bugs my DH the most) You may want to look at some of the "Home-away-from-home" resorts to economize on the eating budget. You can do a great hotel comparison on wdwig.com
Or, do as I did the last time - booked it, paid for it, and said - "The arrangements are all set honey, let's go and have a great time!"
Good Luck!

 

[ducklite]

Don't try to convice him, just book it and tell him to get over it!

Anne

 

[LeahA]

Thank you for all of your responses! He! He! He! I even made my husband read a few! He didn't like the one about just booking it, and not telling him!

I asked him what was the absolute highest $ amount we could spend on an onsite hotel. With the amount he gave me, we could stay either at an AS resort or a Moderate.

Now, which one? Hmmmmmmm.

Thanks,
Leah

 

[luvindisneyworld]

i would say the AS, just because the kids will really Love it and when he sees how happy they are maybe this will change his mind in the future about staying on site.
misty

 

[susy]

Recent codes during value season have been about $49 for and $79 for mods-in other words, a steal.

Add $7 a day parking fee to your offsite rate.

With little ones (mine is 5) it is great to get to the parks early, leave after lunch and actually USE your hotel pool (and pool bar, ha ha), take a nap and enjoy cooler, less crowded evenings at the parks. Since the most crowded time at the parks is between 1 and 4, you actually get MORE for your money going early and then later.

Disney transportation is very good- the only long rides are to DTD . Even from AKL our longest ride was 15 minutes to MK.
It is nice to not have to drive and to get dropped off in the front of the park and nice to get into a cool bus, instead of walking out to a hot car. Add the GAS money you will save.

Magic Mornings!!!! Onsite guests get an hour extra every , so factor THAT into your daily rate!

If you decide on a value resort, be sure that is what you want.
I would recommed CBR for more of a "resort feel".
Rooms are recently reurbished and the largest of the mods. The foodcourt was just redone. Very close to Epcot and MGM (by bus).

The bottom line is...... I don't think you can do better( pricewise) offsite and get a comparable experience!

 

[DisneyKidds]

With the amount he gave me, we could stay either at an AS resort or a Moderate.

I'd say go for a moderate. I'd recommend POR Riverside or Coronado Springs. I think POR Riverside is the best themed moderate resort. The grounds are lovely, the variety of buildings enhances the atmosphere, the pool is nice, the restaurant/food court area is cool, you can take a ride along the water in a horse drawn carriage - all the details that I think make the Disney resorts so great. CSR is also nice and with it's facilities it is the most upscale of the moderates. It also has a great main pool with a wonderful playground for the kids. There are a number of very nice quiet pools as well. We have stayed at the All Stars, and some people love it. However, IMHO it is not the best example of what a Disney resort can be and may not be one to impress him with.

If you really want to impress him, look into renting DVC points from a DVC member to stay in a DVC villa. Depending on when you are going it can save you a lot and you get to stay in a deluxe resort. You can find more info on the Rent/Trade board. The % savings off of rack rate you can realize doing this would get the attention of the accountant in him . A week at OKW would likely run you less than $150 a night for a big room with a fridge, sink, and microwave. You can get weeknights at OKW for about $100 a night, but weekend nights are more.

 

[Tikiman]

All I can say is we use to stay off site and you never will again after you stay on-site. Two reasons.

1. Time saver
2. Much less stress being able to return to the resort when you want to.

Aloha

Steve