Is EE worth $1000 more?

[Grammy4Lizzy]

We were at DLR on Oct 2, 3 4. The line for EE at DCA was down the hall, past the Storytellers Cafe, up th walkway toward DVC into the GCH and wrapped around the lobby. The line outside at the turnstiles was even longer. This was on a Wednesday. Make sure you line up early. By the time we got to RSR the wait time was 120 minutes. That was at 9:30.
Have a great time.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Answer to the OP.

I won't tell you what to do, nor try to stack the deck and lobby for one or the other decision. You gave a figure of $1,000 difference so that is what I will work with. But I will tell you what we would do and my reasoning in the hopes you'll find your decision a bit easier. Fair enough?
Here goes. $1,000 is pretty far along to another trip for us. And given that it likely won't be extremely busy the week after Thanksgiving week, we'd probably save the $1,000 and stay off site. Given the low crowds, I don't think EE alone is going to make a huge difference. So we're not paying $1,000 for EE. Now Disney's hotels are better though. The Hotels across the street are bare bones. So if you don't like bare bones places, then you probably would want to consider on site more strongly. But for us, they aren't so much better that we're going to pay that extra money. $1,000 is a lot of money for us. So if that makes up the rest for you that's great. Go for it. It wouldn't for us. That said, for others reading, the difference isn't always $1,000 dollars so it's always best to see if you can find a deal. 5 days should be more than sufficient to get whatever you want to in and many things multiple times given how uncrowded it will be from Monday through Thursday of that week after Thanksgiving week. And we still get one EE to use at DL. Sunday at the beginning of the week and Saturday at the end will be bad though. One other thing. Be aware of your night time shows and what days they are scheduled if you wish to see them.

Let's look at the difference between on and offsite in regards to EE. Here's what we'd be doing in either case.
If we're onsite, we're hitting early entries. That was the easy one.
If we're off site, we go to DL on one of those EE days and take advantage of EE. Fantasyland, if you want to do it, is a great choice for EE.
We go to DCA on days where it doesn't have EE. We get into line early, and get in before the humongous crowds.
We try to take advantage of a day where DL doesn't have EE to hit those EE rides we didn't get to on our EE day first.
If we're stuck going to Disneyland on an EE day but we don't have it, we hit Indiana Jones first and then head to critter country and make our way gradually back to start with. The EE folks tend not to get done in FL and/or TL until after opening so the other side is where to go in that situation.
I think you'll be able to get around fine.

 

[indygirl99]

Just by the title of the thread, I can tell you've already made up your mind. For us, we are staying 6 nights at the Villas at the Grand Californian for $178.33 per night (DVC rental made 7+ months out). Compare that to $100-$130 per night for off site, and the difference is pretty small.

But for that price difference, you get the Disney immersion. We are not renting a car, making it similar to WDW. We are doing all the character dining restaurants in the hotel (I know, open to all, but much less likely to attend them if staying offsite), partaking in the Get Up & Go Power Walk through an empty DCA, loving the EMH into DCA for better Radiator Springs Racers wait times, and just enjoying being in a hotel inside a Disney theme park! That is worth $60 per day, in my opinion.

The powerwalk has not been in DCA since carsland opened. It is through DTD and the resort hotel properties now.

 

[howardlee2]

no way. i remember years ago having the most fun watching my wife RUN when the rope was dropped to space mountain @ WDW. that was the first and LAST time i ever saw her move like that!!! my kids video taped it and it is hilarious!!! just get to the park ~30-45 min prior to opening and plan where you are going 1st and next. and enjoy that xtra hour of sleep!!!

 

[planningjollyholiday]

I really struggled with spending so much extra money when we went the last week of september/begining of october. To be perfectly honest i am generally a frugal person and our family income is not big by any means. However, i am so glad that we spent the extra money to stay onsite. We truly had such a magical time. The EE made it so much easier, it was crazy to see how on some rides like TSMM there would be like a 2 min wait during EE and then as soon as the park opened up in a matter of minutes it would jump to huge waits.

 

[kailuagirl]

Our first family trip we stayed off site, I would walk by the GCH and dream of staying there, but I'm super tight so no way would I spend the money. I'm a total coupon and sale girl. Our friends visit DLR and stay the GCH and tell us all about their love for it. Our next trip DH wants to stay there, I don't wanna spend the extra $, but he's the income earner, so I agree. We were in heaven. It actually felt like we were on vacation the whole entire time. It was wonderful, the service, tmosphere, everything. We were sold. We just returned from 6 nights last week. I never look back now or regret what it costs. I just try not to think about it and enjoy ourselves. It really is nice for us and makes it for a more relaxing vacation. We love it. For us, it's worth it. But if you can't afford it or if money is an issue, I wouldn't stress about it and stay elsewhere. But if you can, it's worth it to us in everyway. I think you have to also think beyond the EE aspect.

 

[Eeee-va]

EE isn't worth $1,000 more--you could add on a full extra day for that cost. I wouldn't worry so much about EE for the crowds either...by most accounts, Cars Land is still rather busy on its EE days, and aside from Fantasyland, Disneyland seems to be manageable on Magic Morning days. You'll still have 2-3 days to get into the park for Cars Land on an even footing with hotel guests.

That said, staying on-property is nice. If you really want to stay on-property, you could try a split-stay. 2 days on-site could get you EE up to 3 days (check-in and check-out days included). I don't know which off-site hotel you are at, but it's a beautiful walk from the Paradise Pier to DCA. I'm not sure I'd pay the price difference myself, even to do a split stay, but if you are interested, it's worth considering. I still wouldn't do it for the early entries, though.

 

[StyledSugar]

If you are only planning on staying on-site for the EE then no, it is not worth it.

That being said, staying on-site is so worth it for so many other reasons. The magic always seems to be in the air there and we LOVED it. We stayed there for a couple of nights on our last trip and have decided to spend our entire Christmas vacation there this time. It is going to be about an extra $1,500 for our 8 night stay but we decided it is worth it to us. Would it be worth it to someone else? Maybe not but you need to do what is right for your family and figure out if it is worth it for you.

 

[bumbershoot]

I have a broken pixie dust meter, because I found our time at the Best Western PPI to be exactly as magical as our recent 8 day stay at DLH. Even better, we didn't send anything back to our room at the PPI, so we didn't end up with a broken toy by the time it was picked up, like we did at DLH! (resulting in me having to fight my way into Disneyland on the Columbus Day Holiday-Monday to the ONE and ONLY place in the ENTIRE resort that had the dang toy to exchange it) This was most distinctly unmagical.

So I'll just say up front that ANY trip to Disneyland is fabulous, even the one where we stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn and walked over a mile just to get to or from the park each day (except the one night that we snagged a taxi b/c our feet hurt).

With the current crowd situation at DCA would having EE be worth the extra $1000 to stay onsite?

Just plan your days so that you are going on the days that DL's MM is. There, problem solved. It's just like avoiding EMH at WDW...don't go when others are going early.

And on the days you want to go to DCA, but there's EMH there, don't go to Carsland. Go on Soarin', TSMM, Grizzly, Screamin', etc. Go where the people aren't. Which is just like going to DL on a MM day when you don't have MM.


Gosh golly NO, EE to DCA is NOT worth an extra 1K, not in any universe. Now if it were every day, then maybe it's worth something...but you know what days it's held; just go on the other days.

The only other advantage would be saving on food in the park.

A percentage off every single meal you have at participating places (which include Haagen Dasz at DTD) is worth something and not to be scoffed at!

And you also get merchandise discounts. Again, not to be scoffed at.

If you're already coming in even, those discounts are nice. Just sayin'.

...partaking in the Get Up & Go Power Walk through an empty DCA....

It's only for people above a certain age (teen years, I think... I know that my 8 year old is too young for it), and if the OP's avatar picture is current, then only one parent can do that each morning.

We like PPH over GCH. We actually felt that our walk time to get back to our room was less at PPH then GCH because of where our room was at GCH.

I think we had the same room at the Grand.

If they are opening at 10, they must expect light crowds.

Good point.

Just something to consider, it's likely EVERY guest that is staying on site will be at the park for those early entry times given that they are at 9 instead of 8.

Nah. On any given day there will be people sleeping in because they drank too much somewhere the night before, they went from morning to the very end of the parks and are exhausted, they have a character meal, it's their pool day, it's checkin and they missed it, it's checkout and they are catching a flight... There are going to be SO many guests NOT at the lines on any given day. And while I don't know what companies have a convention during that time, there could be conventions/business meetings... There was a HUGE, and week-long, convention at DLH the week before, and going over, Columbus Day this year. Most of those people didn't touch the parks until the afternoon, because they had work stuff to do.

The powerwalk has not been in DCA since carsland opened. It is through DTD and the resort hotel properties now.

Ooh good catch. It did say something about "through the Disneyland Resort" now that I think about it.



With a 10am start, I would sleep, I would wake up for an early swim, I would have a character meal, I would do my shopping...I could do so many things with a nice late start like that...how luxurious!

 

[Mary09]

I figure if it was worth the premium to most people then the Dis hotels would be booked solid 365 days a year and/or they'd own all the surrounding hotels. My guess would be that on any given night, there are at least 5-10 off-site hotel guests visiting the parks for every one on-site guest, just given the selection of rooms available. So for maybe 80-90% of us hotel visitors, it's not worth it?

 

[ValpoCory]

The powerwalk has not been in DCA since carsland opened. It is through DTD and the resort hotel properties now.

I've called several times and have been told they go through DCA still on later opening days (9am). The temporary change to the DTD route was for days that DCA opened to Early Entry and/or regular guests before 9am. We are going in late January, with most days DCA likely opening 9am or later.

I'll be sure to report back with a first hand account on the route during a 9/10am opening day.

 

[ValpoCory]

It's only for people above a certain age (teen years, I think... I know that my 8 year old is too young for it), and if the OP's avatar picture is current, then only one parent can do that each morning.

Yep. My wife and I are planning on each going on it, as long as it goes into DCA.

 

[ValpoCory]

...

 

[Ancient Purple]

It all depends on what is important to you.

I am planning a trip to Europe next year and we have our budget and decided that we could do the no-holes-barred extravaganza for about 10 days or we could do a more modest trip with moderate cost of accommodations and suffering the 9-hour flight in Coach and spend 17 days. For us, it is a no brainer. 17 days in Europe it shall be! (Note: that doesn't mean we won't splurge on some things such as some fantastic meals and a few extra tourist stops).

On the times I have stayed near DLR, I have selected off-site because the difference has been up to $250 per night in cost. Having the "magic" of being in a Disney hotel room versus a perfectly wonderful room at the CCI or the Ayres just isn't enough for me to justify not spending that money on the Chef's Counter at Napa Rose or the like.

This is no judgement on those who choose to stay at a DLR hotel. More power to them.

For me, however, I just find it a little difficult to slap down $200-$300 a night for a nice room at the DLH or GCH when I am paying about $150 a night for a two-bedroom apartment rental in Edinburgh and $175 a night for a one-bedroom apartment rental in London, both of which are in the hearts of those cities.

So, to answer your question, the $1000 extra just to stay onsite and get EMH would not be of value to me.

 

[ValpoCory]

Most are in agreement that $1000 is too much. I created a poll to see what is not too much ... http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3008970

 

[rramstad]

We had this exact question in July, but the difference for us was a bit more, because we needed two rooms. It was tough largely because in July 2011 we stayed at the GCH and loved it, but ultimately in 2012 we decided to stay off site (Ramada Maingate) and that worked out great... so well in fact that we're pretty sure we'll be going to DLR again in 2013.

That was my real logic... I knew if I could get the price point down to something more reasonable, we could go every year, while the kids are at an age where they can really enjoy it. The 2011 GCH was fantastic and for a once in a lifetime or once a decade trip, I'd recommend staying on site, sure, or if the money just isn't an issue. That said, we're just far enough away (Seattle) that getting down to SoCal is expensive, and yet we're close enough that I knew if we found a more affordable way to go to DLR that we could go again... so we decided to try off site and were pleasantly surprised with how well that worked out.

I just couldn't justify something like $100+ per hour per person for that one hour each day, and as it turned out at least July 2012 from what I saw in the parks that EMH was very well advertised to hotel guests and the park with EMH was SLAMMED in the mornings, crowds very similar to what you'd expect at mid morning or later, and the strategy of simply going to the opposite park was absolutely the way to go and IMHO better than the EMH.

(Of course, all bets are off if CarsLand is super super super important to you, but for us, we wanted to see it, we did, we wanted to ride RSR a few times, we did, and so we had no issues... there are TONS of things we like to see and do at DLR and frankly CL mostly did the wonderful trick of making other parts of DLR empty!)

 

[modegard]

To me it was well worth it. We were there last week and used early entry 3 out of 6 days. Twice into DCA to do Carsland. Both days we got fastpasses to Radiator Racers plus riding and exploring in the morning before the regular crowds. We rode first and then got in line for fastpasses second. We also rode Toy Story with no wait which is a big bonus. Time is money. I would rather spend my money and save the time. It all depends on what is important to your family though. Have a fabulous holiday! You will love it!

 

[madmaxx]

One factor I don't see discussed much is the overall cost per ride. The DL hotels are much more costly than the motels in the area, and moderately more expensive than the fancier hotels to the south. If you take the overall cost, however, and factor for the extra rides and resort experience it starts to look a bit more reasonable.

For our upcoming trip, we're paying around $40/day in transportation costs (flights, transfers, parking). We've stayed at the Hojo in the past, and it's our favourite of the local offsite spots. The Hojo is $140-150/night with the Dis discount (this fall, and it's pretty booked). Food for the day is $130/day or so for all of us. Tickets are another $140/day. Total: about $460/day. Call it $500/day with tips, trinkets, and rounding errors.

We could of course save on food and lodging (we have in the past), but we had a lot of fun on the above budget last time we were out, and we only go once every few years.

A PH has one magic morning for DL, which usually yields an extra 5-15 rides, depending on what you're aiming for. Our record number of rides after the MM hours is somewhere around 25, though our average is closer to 15 with fireworks and other non-ride shows. On average, we hit 30-130% more rides with early entry, in a much less crowded park (which feels so very magical). At best, we're paying $20 per ride for the family. At worst, we're paying $35-40/ride.

With a magic morning, the cost per ride drops as low as $12 and averages around $25. Of course the parks are busier this year, so I'm not sure how many rides we'll hit per day this fall.

If you don't think about the total cost, you can nearly double the number of rides you can hit with hotel early entry (or half your average cost per ride). If rides are your thing, it's a good deal.

When we booked the DLH this year, the base rooms were 250-315 a night. That's an additional 100-165/night. That's 33-50% more on average per day than the Hojo, less than the worth of the number of additional rides we tend to get with early entry (10 rides is worth about $200).

Not including the magic (and slight improvement over the HoJo in quality), the extra cost is better than break even if the number of rides you can do per day matters. For us, rides are huge, so we splurge when we can. It's a luxury resort that we don't get to do every time, but the extra cost is not entirely wasted.

 

[rramstad]

I think the PP has good sound logic, but that said, I would encourage exploring the stats yourself, and I'd also definitely look at a zig vs zag situation i.e. from my limited experience in July, EMH was much more crowded than MM used to be, and the opposite park was EMPTY by comparison i.e. at 7 AM DCA was a zoo (I was waiting in the regular FP line), but at 8 AM DL was empty. It seemed that EMH resulted in that park being more crowded for the entire day, actually. The best start we had at DCA was a non EMH day, we got there early, I got in line for RSR FP, my family went and rode RSR single rider, we all met up at TSMM, and we rode every single ride pretty much going around the lagoon in something like 40 minutes with zero lines. DCA was never really all that crowded that day except for CL. By contrast, on EMH days, DCA was more or less unbearable with 90+ minute waits for TSMM.

Using FP, taking a break in the afternoon, and being there for both park open and park close, these are all good strategies for maximizing ride counts, if that's your thing...

 

[madmaxx]

I think the PP has good sound logic, but that said, I would encourage exploring the stats yourself, and I'd also definitely look at a zig vs zag situation i.e. from my limited experience in July, EMH was much more crowded than MM used to be, and the opposite park was EMPTY by comparison i.e. at 7 AM DCA was a zoo (I was waiting in the regular FP line), but at 8 AM DL was empty. It seemed that EMH resulted in that park being more crowded for the entire day, actually. ...

I'm worried you're right too: the crowds I've seen reported this year may completely change how we attack the park. Mornings may no longer be as productive as they used to be!