Hello, sometime down the line I may take a trip to DW by myself. I was thinking onsite maybe the safest way to go, but just curious if any of you gals have stayed offsite alone. Where did you stay? Herc.
No, I have always stayed onsite. Don't like the idea of getting into a dark car at the end of the day to drive somewhere offsite.
in the early 80's when I could not afford disney - not even moderate hotels - although then the WDW resorts were not that expensive but you had to make reservations at least a year in advance and have the trip completely paid for 60 days before your arrived. Anyway I needed at Disney fix - so I stayed at a hotel that doesn't exist today - but I also stayed at the Holiday Inn on US 192 the next year. It was very nice and I felt pretty safe of course I was in my twenties so what did I care.
I typically stay off-site on a few nights of every trip (saves DVC points). After staying in a number of locations I've selected a few that I feel safe in. One location is along Palm Parkway. I've been to both the Sierra Suites (twice) and Hampton Inn (once). Both had well light parking areas, interior corridors, deadbolted doors, 24 hour front desk service and key only access to side doors. I felt very safe at both. Access to WDW is great too. A few places I felt leary about and won't return to. One was the HI West Gate on 192 and the Silverleaf Suites near Universal (I think they are out of business now).
I stay on site 99.9% of my WDW trips and feel very safe. The value resorts offer a very good value and are very safe resorts. If you want to stay offsite maybe the resorts at DTD on International Drive would be good, but these resorts tend to cost just as much if not more than a WDW value or moderate resort and the transportation to the WDW parks can't even compare to onsite transportation. Do be careful, if you decide to stay offsite, because unfortunately there are people who target tourists in the Orlando area since tourists typically carry a lot of cash, expensive camera and video equipment, laptops, luggage etc. There are nice, safe offsite hotels near WDW, just make sure you pick one that others have stayed at and recommend. Margie J has listed some good/safe places and I am sure others will post their experiences. We rented a vacation home just outside of Kissimmee about 9 years ago and although the home was beautiful we were robbed and the condo/home association was not responsible! Luckily we were not there when this happened and my homeowners insurance covered the losses but it does put a bad spin on a vacation when something like this happens. Since this incident I have since bought a DVC membership and a retirement home in FL and we either stay at our home and commute to WDW, or the vast majority of times we are at WDW we stay in our DVC home or another WDW resort.
I have never stayed solo off-property. For my upcoming trip I had a night booked at a Fairfield Inn to avoid paying peak rates, but I was able to get an AMEX discount at AS Music and I'm spending that night there now. I prefer Disney resorts, or the Swan/Dolphin since they practically are Disney resorts. I don't think I would hesitate to stay alone at the Downtown Disney resorts or anyplace relatively close to Disney World. I wasn't particularly worried about the Fairfield Inn (it's on I-4 just across from Epcot). However, do be careful wherever you stay.
A couple of years ago I stayed at the Doubletree Castle on International Drive as a solo - that was a great place to stay. It was all interior corridors, and the elevator was key activated for added safety. I would stay there again if the price was right! I also stayed at the Hampton Inn Lake Buena Vista solo - it was fine, but I would have preferred a second floor room. I had a first floor room, and it made me a tad nervous but I had no problems.
I stayed at the Marriott Fairfield Inn in Little Lake Bryan. New hotel, interior corridors and gate security. I felt fine and would stay there again. If I am staying offsite I do perfer there or someplace in Lake Buena Vista to other places.
I would only do an offsite solo trip if I had a car and was in a high quality resort. I've done it twice - both times I stayed at a Priceline 4-star resort. The first time was at Marriott Orlando World Center ($55/nite). I used their valet parking and always felt very safe. Second trip, stayed at Wyndham Palace Resort & Spa ($52/nite). I was in their Islands building and again always felt safe. There was a special parking lot for that building and I self-parked. I could also walk to Downtown Disney if I wanted to.
I'm not sure your safety is all that much better on site than off. Remember that Disney has a vested interest in keeping any incidents as quiet as possible. That adds to the illusion of safety. A minimal amount of poking around reveals onsite incidents. That said...I would pick any major hotel chain with interior corridors & central access. Major hotels that routinely host conventions are also good. This is the same rule I would generally use for any major city. I think you would be just as safe at the Downtown Disney hotels as at any of the onsite hotels. And I will add that I travel alone to any number of locations and feel comfortable doing it.
I've been to WDW several times solo, but always stay on property. When I make my original ressie, I always mention that I am going solo and would prefer a room fairly close to the main building. It's not that I'm lazy, but more for a security issue. As I do where ever I am, I make sure I'm familiar with my surroundings. ANYTIME I'm in my room, even for a few minutes, I ALWAYS double lock the door. I don't tend to go to DTD late at night. I always lock up my valuables, including my airline tickets, money, etc. I take very little in the valuables department. One credit card, my ATM card, license, a little cash and that's about it. No jewerly, or things I would hate to lose.
I've had scary experiences three out of four times that I stayed offsite alone. At the Wyndham Orlando, I awoke late in the evening to someone banging on my door for 5 minutes. I stayed quiet and they finally left. At the Renaissance Worldgate, they wrote down the wrong room number and someone opened the door as I struggled to get the key to work. At the Wyndham Palace, I walked off the elevator, inserted my key, and opened the door to find it wasn't my room. Apparently, they key more than one room the same. My room was 2 doors down. My room didn't have any security deadbolt so I was quite nervous there. I feel very secure onsite, but will stay offsite again. I bought a door stop alarm that will sound if the door opens and also pile up moveable furniture in front of the door.
Hercamore, I prefer to stay onsite (who doesn't!!!), but my last trip, my budget had to overrule my desires, and I stayed at the HOJO Maingate. I got a fantastic rate from Dreams Unlimited ($29 a night!!). I travel a lot solo, and stay in lots of different hotels/motels, so I have become accustomed to different levels of "niceness." The HOJO maingate has outside doors, which I usually try to avoid, but was quite secure - with a two step dead-bolt inside. I had a room near the lobby (but not too close) and the parking lot there is VERY well lit. As are, I'd like to point out, the Disney park parking lots. I was there for 7 nights, and had no problems or concerns at all. Everyone has different levels of personal security, so it's hard to judge where you might feel more comfortable. But - I must confess ---- I will definitely try to stay onsite from now on. I had friends staying onsite and to meet up with them, and make the drive back to my room every night was a bit of a drag.
When I go on a solo trip, I book the room for 2 adults - it doesn't cost anymore and it doesn't look like I'm by myself to anyone with access to the reservation.
