If you stay off-site, does it really provide a huge savings?

[tim17]

We have four teenage children so financially staying on-site is just not an option - our 3 BR rental home is only costing $1800 for three weeks in July/August!

Usually we have a good breakfast at the house, take snacks for mid-morning and maybe get a burger at the parks for lunch. If we're staying all day at the parks we'll eat on I-Drive or the 192 on the way home which still leaves time for a swim before bed.

Places like Ponderosa etc are ideal for hungry teenagers and great value. As well as the money side of things being off-site gives us so much freedom to visit other places.

 

[preschoolmom]

I was afraid we'd be missing something, by not being onsite. I understand your concerns.



I got over the "fun" of being in one room when I had my 3rd child. 5 people & one bathroom ... notsomuch fun anymore! Other thing that sold me on offiste accomodations? A whirlpool tub, a full size fridge, a microwave, more than one TV, and washer & dryer. I pack half as many clothes and do a couple of loads during the week. (I know that isn't everyone's cup of tea, though)



I posted this upthread, but I'll share how it works for us ... using our recent stay at Cypress Point as our example resort.

Arrival day: our flight was early, so we went straight to Epcot for several hours. We arrived at CP around 4pm, and our villa was ready. I had some snacks in our carry on, so we had something to eat and got our bearings at the resort. The kids swam for a little while before we headed out to Publix. On the way to Publix, we stopped at Pizzeria Uno to get a carry out menu. Called that in from the car on the way to the grocery, so it would be ready when we went back to Cypress Point.

** there is probably a closer grocery than Publix, but that's my grocery of choice in Florida. I love it. ***

Typical Park Day: Breakast in the villa - scrambled eggs, microwave bacon, and toast/french toast/cereal (something quick) easily made while everyone is getting ready. I bring along granola bars for a midmorning snack.

lunch: counter service in the parks

midday break: it took us, on average, less than 30 minutes to get from the theme park exit to the resort parking lot. Less time than the WDW transportation, 99% of the time.

at the resort: swim or rest. pre-park snack of chips & salsa, veggies & dip, cheese & crackers, etc.

evenings: we usually snack our way through the parks - especially Epcot. Yummm.

leaving the park: takes less time than waiting for a boat or bus with mobs of hot, sweaty people

I do very little actual cooking, other than breakast. Sometimes we'll have frozen pizza or microwave popcorn, but that isn't really cooking to me. LOL.

In the past, we've grabbed stuff to grill out at the resort for supper on nights we aren't planning to go back to a park.

Thank you again for posting this! This has me really convinced off-site will be a good fit for us!

We'll do simple breakfasts and dinners at our condo - and share counter service and snack our way through the parks

I think we can afford two weeks instead of one by staying off site!

 

[conniehar90]

We stayed in All Star Music one year and one year off site at Holiday Inn. THEN I found out about the condos! I will never go back to on-site again. I agree with Brian - it is much more about the extra space you get for your dollar. Parents and kids have their own rooms. You have a nice kitchen where you can keep drinks cold. You have a washer/dryer so you don't have to pack tons of clothes. A nice dining table and family room area. At least TWO full bathrooms! We tend to eat breakfast in the condo (cereal, toast, etc.), lunch in a park and sometimes dinner at the condo (pizza, spaghetti), offsite restaurant or in the park.

I have never taken Disney transportation, but I would bet offsite driving your own car is faster than taking a Disney bus from an onsite resort. It takes us 10-15 minutes from the condo to the parking lots.

Some would never leave on-site because they want to stay in the magic. That is fine - it really is a matter of personal choice. We like to get away from it all, control our own transportation and have some extra room.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[Magalex]

We usually stay onsite(We do love the Disney Resorts) but for June 2009 I have the Doubletree Guest suites in DTD on my short list. This summer vacation to TN. we stayed in a similar family suite and it was so nice just to have room and the hotel provided breakfast too. So I was really thinking it would be nice to stay at the Doubletree plus I still consider it in our comfort zone of Disney. We rent a car anyways onsite or off. Plus the Holiday Inn DTD is scheduled to be open also by Feb. 2009.

 

[dioxide45]

We don't stay offsite to save money. We enjoy the extra space and freedom. I am sure that we could have stayed onsite for less than what we paid total for offsite; however, we were able to stay longer than if we had stayed onsite.

 

[Amirah95]

I really appreciate all these responses!

Thank you so much!

We are leaning towards staying off-site - and going for longer

I think the reason my numbers weren't working is that I was way overestimating on food...

The longer the better!!!!! 4 or 5 nights is just not enough for us. We usually do 7 nights, but this year we're going to go ahead and do 14 nights...going to do a WDW / Universal split.

 

[IcePrincess467]

I really can't comment on staying onsite, as I have never stayed onsite. DH & I were going to stay onsite this year, at POP, but we opted for a longer stay offsite. I only get to disney once a year, and if I can stay longer then that's what I will do! We found a great deal online for a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bah condo in a nice gated community only about 10 minutes from disney $1300, a rental car for $398, our disney tickets 10 day PH WP& More will be $640 for 2, airfare was $200 (taxes- we had points we used), and lets say we spend $1000 on food/snacks/gifts that brings me to a total of $3538...and this is for a 17 day trip!! I say that is pretty good and it included everything...from snacks, to gifts!! When I was pricing disney I think it was about this much for a shorter period not including gift money, a car rental or the airport taxes. Plus, it included the DDP, but tips are not included anymore, and you still have to buy breakfast so you'd have to add on more.

While I do want to stay onsite one day, I'll probably wait until I have kids and want to experience the true feeling with them...(plus DH & I will be making more money and be able to go mod...hehe)

It's all really about perference In any case, you are still at the happiest place in the world, regardless if you are onsite or offsite

 

[davinakb]

preschoolmom, it looks like you've already made your decision, but FWIW: We find we do save money staying off site, get More for Less and a more enjoyable WDW trip.

• ROOM: Timeshares or private rentals often give more for the $ in terms of quality, luxury, extras like Internet access. Full kitchen, laundry, extra TVs and bathrooms are so worth the $; the extra space and privacy is ideal for our groups of 4-8 vs. cramped hotel rooms.
• TIME: cheaper room rates = longer stays, which we find more relaxing as we are not rushing all the time. (which also helps reduce the need for the EMH)
• TRANSPORTATION: We drive at WDW. Period. The convenience and speed of driving ourselves to parks (Monorail to MK the only exception), resorts for meals, off property to outlets, other parks is worth the $. So the cost of rental car/parking (if we fly) is not factored into room costs. YMMV.
• FOOD: We splurge here a bit, consider nice meals part of our vacation treat. We eat a filling breakfast at the place, freeze waters and take snack cheese (kept in cooler with waters) into the parks, maybe have a few snacks around the condo. Just buy what we need, minimal laundry supplies, etc. We will eat one nice table service meal either at the parks or resort almost every day (we have DDE card, share foods, to save $).
• TICKETS: if we are doing a longer (7-14 days) stay (or commit to another long stay the following year) we get APs (which covers parking) so that can save a little $ (esp. on the second trip, since the tickets are prepaid).

Overall I think we spend maybe the same or less than others do for a comparable trip, yet we: have more room, nice meals with wine, longer stays, money for outlet shopping, etc.

 

[twooley2]

ok I think Im going to take the dive and stay offsite for the first time. You all have convinced me to try it

 

[isla bonita]

ok I think Im going to take the dive and stay offsite for the first time. You all have convinced me to try it

I would not spend another night in a hotel again personally. We have rented condos and a home in NH also.

As long as you know it is not for every one. There are some that even after trying the offsite found it was not for them.

 

[madge]

As long as you know it is not for every one. There are some that even after trying the offsite found it was not for them.

this is a very good point that I should have made in my posts earlier. It works for our family - we opt for condo-like lodging, no matter where we're vacationing. By saving money on our room & food, we're able to take vacations every year. The fact that we're staying in nice resorts is icing on the cake. LOL.

 

[FayeW]

Our 3 bdrm condo at Windsor Hills is $762. (total) for 9 nights. That works out to $84.67 per night. Even adding in the daily parking fee still puts us at less than $100. per day (and we won't go to parks everyday, plus even onsite we would have some parking since we will go to US/IOA at least 3 days).

For our dates, the values are showing as starting at $82, so once you add in the tax we would pay about the same as for the condo + parking fees. Four people in one room in a value hotel for 9 nights vs 3 bdrms, 2 bths, full kitchen, washer and dryer for the exact same money...not even up for discussion in my house.

I am using points to pay for the rental car so no cost for that, however, we have always paid cash for a rental car in the past and found that the cost of the car was more than offset by the lower cost of being able to eat breakfasts and snacks, as well as having drinks available, in the condo. We plan on just bringing carry on luggage this time since we always do at least 2 or 3 loads of laundry in the condo.

 

[sln88]

I have to admit that we seriously were looking over staying offsite but just cant seem to break free after staying twice onsite. Yes we are all in the same room in a moderate but isnt that part of the fun. Everyone laughing and cutting up together in the same room and being able to get up and get coffee while walking to the bustop before the day gets hot, not dealing with traffic by having to drive traffic light to traffic light. The cost for meals well my question is how do you break up a day to cook offsite. I guess Disney is the size of San Francisco. I dont want to drive something that size for 2 days let alone a week and than have to cook when we get to our destination. Someone tell me how this actually works as the last time we were there we needed everybit of our time to see everything we were so excited to see and not miss.

You must be lucky to have a family that gets along that well! Mine....well, not so much- LOL. Anyhow, as far as cooking time, we usually go in the fall, so the parks are not open as late. Since it is not as crowded that time of year, we can still get to all the attractions even with the shorter hours.
And, its not like I am cooking gourmet meals. The kids might eat cereal or I would scramble some eggs or make fast cook bacon or sausage. We all get the snacks and lunches together while we are getting ready. Dinner might be fast food on the way home or frozen pizza and ice cream. Since we have gone on 5 trips, we do take a couple days off from the parks and go eat somewhere nicer.

So far, I have not been wowed by Disney food, so I don't feel like we are missing anything by not eating there. We did do Beaches and Cream when they still sold vouchers. It was good but not awesome. My daughter and I went on a backstage tour that included lunch at MK. Again, good, but not like I had to do it again. My biggest disappointment was going to the Disney one in the lodge where everyone raves about how awesome and funny the servers are. I took my daughter there as a fun treat and it was nothing great. Our server did not do anything special for us and the food was average.
We did do a character breakfast once, and I thought the food there was good- especially since it was a buffet. If my kids were still young, I could see doing the character meal on a trip, because then it is more of an experience.

Anyhow, to me, having the kitchen makes it easier for food. It would be a hassle to me to have to get up and stop at a restaurant for breakfast. Especially if I was using Disney transportation. And, if you are tired at the end of the day, it is easy to grab some premade deli food or fast food and go eat at the condo. I don't want to have to mess with making reservations at Disney restaurants, and then have to break up the day to go eat. I can eat anywhere, I am at Disney for the attractions.

Also, since we go in the fall, driving is a breeze. I don't know how bad traffic is there during peak times, so maybe it would be a hassle.

AND, AS SOMEONE ELSE POINTED OUT- THE IN ROOM WHIRLPOOL! WHAT A GREAT WAY TO RELAX AT THE END OF THE DAY!
I might rent a pool home this year and I am going to miss that!

 

[Amirah95]

And, its not like I am cooking gourmet meals. The kids might eat cereal or I would scramble some eggs or make fast cook bacon or sausage. We all get the snacks and lunches together while we are getting ready. Dinner might be fast food on the way home or frozen pizza and ice cream. Since we have gone on 5 trips, we do take a couple days off from the parks and go eat somewhere nicer.

We do this something like this too. We don't do character breakfasts because it's the same food I can make for breakfast, there is no waiting around so we save time and money right here.

We do some TS meals at Disney World and that's two at most and everything else is CS on-site or off-site. It just depends on what we want. There are lots of places to eat off-site like Ponderosa, Shoney's, Pizza Hut, Outback, sushi places, etc. We do however like to snack at WDW so we're spending budgeted funds on Mickey Bars, popcorn, turkey legs, pastries, breads, ice cream drinks and all that other stuff in the World.

If you have a family like mine where after dinner they are still looking for more to eat (I love my family), then there are sandwich meats, bread, fresh fruit and other things I bought at the start of our trip that they can eat back at our resort.

 

[twooley2]

I do have to say my family does have a great disposition as a group. As with just two daughters that are 11 months apart, kind of helps there. We are going to try and do offsite but it seems I am having a problem planning meals after having the dining plan all the past visits and experiencing the sit down themed meals. We loved most of the themed meals. I am trying hard to change LOL Hard to teach me new tricks and break old routines

 

[Lisa P.]

How old are your two daughters?

Our kids are close in age - DD, then 21 months later, twin DS's. They've always gotten along well and we were fine sharing a hotel room when they were all small. Enter the preteen and early teen years... it wasn't awful but everything just became such an EFFORT to get along when spending more than a night or two, all together 24/7. In a 2BR condo w/3 sleeping spaces (MBR, 2nd BR, LR), everyone simply... breathed easier. (Those of you with teens will know what I mean! )

Now that they're 19, 17 & 17, it's an absolute necessity to have that space, if we want to actually ENJOY a family vacation together. (Again, parents of teens... ) They still have good relationships. But there's no substitute for personal down time, especially for girls (IMO - and I am one )

We are able to stay onsite by trading timeshares into DVC, and that's still cheaper than a hotel room for us. More often, though, we opt for offsite - especially when we won't be spending much time at the Disney parks, as our older teens like Universal's parks and DH enjoys visits to state parks and beaches. Either way, by having a full kitchen, we spend minimally on groceries for breakfasts and snacks. Offsite restaurants are usually much less expensive than comparable food onsite. If you have hungry teenagers who love buffets, you save a bundle offsite!!! Considering how we're a family of 5 and we pay less for either onsite/offsite timeshare condos than most people spend to cram 5 people into an onsite Disney hotel room, adding in the cost savings on food is just another heap of icing on the cake for us.

So for us, the cost savings is slightly more apparent due to the offsite vs. onsite thing. But the biggest savings we get, is for staying in timeshare condos with a car available vs. staying at onsite Disney hotels with only Disney transport. If we were paying all cash, the greater difference might be due to rental prices... and whether we had a car and were willing to use it for offsite restaurants at times.

 

[twooley2]

I think that is what is making me lean toward trying offsite as the last time we were at Disney the girls were 9 and 10 now they will be 13 and 14. They stil lget along amazingly well but we just might need more room this time.

 

[sln88]

I do have to say my family does have a great disposition as a group. As with just two daughters that are 11 months apart, kind of helps there. We are going to try and do offsite but it seems I am having a problem planning meals after having the dining plan all the past visits and experiencing the sit down themed meals. We loved most of the themed meals. I am trying hard to change LOL Hard to teach me new tricks and break old routines

Maybe on site is right for YOUR family? Just because off site works for some of us, does not mean it is for you. I am sure if you asked a question like this on the on site forum, they could remind you of all the benefits to being on site : )
We probably started staying off site because of the $$. But, now that I have done it, I would pick off site, even if I could afford on site.
My 1st trip to WDW, we did stay on site at FW cabins. Back then, they had really good deals through the place I worked at, plus, I split the cost with my sister, mom and a friend. The trip was great(the 1st trip is the best I think!). But, now that I look back and remember what a hassle that transportation was. walk to the boat landing, take a boat to X, then if you want to go to Y, get off the boat and get on something else. It probably took an hour to get to the park you wanted to go to. I am lazy and too impatient to wait for a bus!
On site does not have VALUE to me, but maybe it is part of what makes YOUR vacation enjoyable to you?

 

[Topo Bella]

We stayed off-site on our trip a few years ago. We found terrific savings by staying at one of the time-share properties (Sheraton Vistana Village in this instance.) In an effort get people interested in their time share property, the rates were great and the rooms were villa-style and really nice.

Our reasons for staying on-property have nothing to do with saving money. With small children, we just prefer the convenience of staying on-property, but I would not hesitate to stay off-property at one of these nicer hotels/villas.

 

[laurabelle]

We save money, get extra space and it's a more relaxing vacation for us. We "move in" and feel like locals. The most "cooking" I do is microwaving leftovers. But we have cereal, yogurt, muffins in the villa... and real coffee! We still eat at our favorite WDW restaurants. An occasional bus ride is ok, but for the whole week, no, I am done with Disney buses and would still rent a car even staying on site. I think there's a lot of misconceptions about staying off Disney property. I think it also depends on what accommodations you are choosing vs. Disney. I prefer to stay in a villa to a non-Disney hotel. We have done both on and off site over the years. I even booked a bounce back rate for fall at a Disney resort, but after I talked it over with the family we decided to stay off site instead. Our family gets along great, but everyone enjoys the space. Oh yeah, a second bathroom with 2 teen girls...priceless!