Just booked a house offsite

[mommytodarlings]

We will be going in December for 3 weeks, arriving on the 15th, leaving January 5th.

We got a really nice 4 BR house at Windsor Palms (well, we hope it's nice, anyway, lol).

We decided to drive down (crazy with 4 dks) and stay offsite for longer because dh won't have this much time off at Christmas for a long time.

Our original plan was a week at POR, but changed our minds once I started looking at houses.

Now, the countdown begins. Can't wait!

 

[Andy B]

How long will the drive be?

Off site will give lots of space for all the kids and widen the choice of restaurant.

 

[sammi]

We leave this Monday and we've rented a townhome in Emerald Island from a very nice lady in the UK! From what I gather Windsor Palms is right near Emerald Island and the whole area looks really nice!

I just can't justify staying in a hotel room anymore........we've rented a villa in Davenport last year and was soooo pleased with the home and especially the prices!

Happy planning!

 

[robinb]

Wow! What a vacation .

I go to WDW at that time every year. I have to warn you that your last two weeks will be very very busy! Being off-site is a huge disadvantage over Christmas and New Years when it comes to getting into the parks. The MK's parking lot will close by about 10:00 - 11:00 AM every day. No kidding. If the MK is on your plan, get there at least 30 minutes before the park opens to non-Disney resort guests. I'm not sure when they open the monorail/boat to non-resort guests ... maybe someone else knows. Oh, and every day is an EHM morning for the MK those two weeks. The rest of the parks will be a zoo too. Look at the EMH schedule and plan your parks around them. You don't want to be near a park that has either a morning EMH or an evening EMH. You can't avoid the MK, so just be there as early as you can.

Christmas and New Year's Eve will also prove to be a problem. Those are probably the two busiest days of the year and you might not be able to return to the parks once you leave due to lack of parking. Your best bet would be to find a spot at Epcot if you leave. You can monorail/bus to the park of your choice. The parks can and do close to new visitors on both those days, but I have never had a problem as a returning guest. YMMV.

The good news is that your first week should be OK. I would recommend that you do as much as you can that first week in commando mode and then change to a more relaxed, laid back touring for the rest of the trip. Annual passes are a must. You'll save money on admission *and* you get free parking! Depending on the age of your kids, you may want to stay with a regular AP and not pay extra for a Premium AP.

One more thing about your house. Make sure you pay for pool heat. Late December can be chilly.

I've always wanted to rent a pool home . You'll have a great time!

 

[A&CsMom]

You will love having the space of the villa for that length of a stay, plus it will be much more economic! Have a great time. If you plan carefully, I'm sure you can have many park days during the less busy times at the beginning and end of your vacation, if the large crowds are of concern to you! Windsor Palms looks beautiful.

 

[A&CsMom]

By the way, I don't know how old your children are, but with a couple DVD players and some other activities, you should be fine! We have driven twice, third time coming up, and the kids have been great -- on the way there they know they are going to WDW, and on the way back, we are all ready to get home.

 

[mommytodarlings]

Well, we've been told it's a 20-22 hour drive. We are in Cambridge.

Our plan is to leave around 4:00pm on the 14th and drive for awhile, then stop and get dks in pjs and such and then drive all night. Dh will be on night shift and coming home the morning of the 14th from his last night in. He will sleep all day and then be able to stay up during the night.

Ages of my kids - DD will be turing 6 on our trip, ds 4.5, ds 3 and dd 16 months.

We are going to have to make a lot of pit stops, lol, but we are hoping the will be able to sleep a lot during the night.

It will definitely be an adventure and I am sure I will come home with quite the trip report, lol.

Thanks Robinb for the tips on the parks. We are planning on doing more our first week and then relaxing with dks for the rest. We only used 2 days of our passes when we went Sept 06-1 day at MK and 1 at AKL was enough for dks. They were just as happy walking around the resort (we stayed at POR).

 

[robinb]

Ages of my kids - DD will be turing 6 on our trip, ds 4.5, ds 3 and dd 16 months.

You are sooo brave!

Thanks Robinb for the tips on the parks. We are planning on doing more our first week and then relaxing with dks for the rest. We only used 2 days of our passes when we went Sept 06-1 day at MK and 1 at AKL was enough for dks. They were just as happy walking around the resort (we stayed at POR).

You will still want to look into the cost of an AP for at least one of you. You can apply the remaining value of one of your tickets to the upgrade and since your kids are so young you will only need the regular AP. Free parking alone will save you $10 (I think) per day, plus there are other benefits like discounts at restaurants and Downtown Disney. Here are the prices for APs: http://www.allearsnet.com/pl/ticketchart.htm#other

Here are the benefits & discounts:
http://www.allearsnet.com/pl/apass.htm#2007

 

[crazy canuck]

We have stayed at Windsor Palms twice and loved the extra room and our very own pool Great spot very convienent. Don't forget the sherberth road short cut to Disney. Keeps you off of the 192. I agree the pool heat is a must at that time of year. Ask for owner to have it on the day before you get there. It takes a day or two to get up to temperature if there is no renters before you.

 

[Mickey Fanatic]

We leave this Monday and we've rented a townhome in Emerald Island from a very nice lady in the UK! From what I gather Windsor Palms is right near Emerald Island and the whole area looks really nice!

I just can't justify staying in a hotel room anymore........we've rented a villa in Davenport last year and was soooo pleased with the home and especially the prices!

Happy planning!

My parents rented a house in Emerald Island in May! We are going down the WHOLE family! I can't wait.

Be sure to post what Emerald island is like.

 

[sammi]

Sure will! And be sure and say hi to your Mom and Dad for me will you? I often think about them and all the fun we used to have at baseball!

 

[mtmbyck]

I am curious to hear feedback on Windsor Palms. Windsor Palms backs on to a water treatment plant (if you go on google earth you can see this) and I know 2 families who said they could smell the water everyday around the pool - like sewage). We booked Windsor Hills for this reason. There was no smell there but you might want to ask to speak to others who have rented this home just to be sure?? Sorry!!

 

[sympatico]

mtmbyck,
I think I remember you saying that you went to WH on March 1st. Just wondering if you were the family on the plane from Toronto that met the couple with 5 kids and a babysitter that were also staying in WH.

 

[Mickey Fanatic]

Sure will! And be sure and say hi to your Mom and Dad for me will you? I often think about them and all the fun we used to have at baseball!

No problem! I will talk to them tomorrow. Have a good trip

 

[mtmbyck]

No Sympatico, this wasn't me... we met my brother and his family and my mom (technically a "babysitter" the night we went to Pleasure Island LOL). We had a 6 bdrm at WH.