Late Arrival or stay elsewhere

[GONETODISNEY]

Hi everyone. I've enjoyed reading all your posts. Arriving to WDW for Christmas staying at AKL. Arriving after 10:00 pm. What is AKL late arrival policy--how late is too late? Also, should I consider staying off site the first night?
Thanks

 

[Magic2000]

Last year, we arrived at the All Star Movies around 1:00 AM. Our flight came in after midnight, and since I had gotten the room for $49, we went to the All Stars.

I would say it depends on what rate you got for the Animal Kingdom Lodge. If its a great rate, about what you'd pay offsite, then go on and check in so that when you wake up - you're all settled in.

Enjoy your trip!!!

 

[lisajl]

I think you can show up anytime. I wish I would have thought about staying off site the first night. Did not even think about it.
Oh well...we are staying at POR and will be arriving, God knows when....
Good luck with your trip!
Lisajl

 

[jwwi]

Keep these things in mind when deciding to stay off site. Rental/own car a must. Will you be going to a park that first day, then I suggest you stay at AKL. Check in takes awhile at any disney resort I have stayed at, it may be worth the hassle to be ready to go in the am. Finally price-so many very nice choices off site for less than $75, a lot of these include breakfast.

 

[BambiTamby]

We usually stay offsite when flying in on the "red-eye".

Lots of great deals on the DD area hotels. Have done the Hilton many times with fantastic internet rates or priceline.

This time we're staying at the Hyatt MCO at an incredible internet rate (which includes a full buffet breakfast) then checking into the Poly concierge probably by 10 am.

Just try to weigh out the costs for each way.

Either way, have a wonderful Christmas at WDW!!!!

 

[IandGsmom]

If you arrive that late is there less chanse of getting an upgrade or room requests? Would it be worth staying offsite that first night and check in early the next day improve room location, etc or do they assign rooms before hand. Since we are flying from Ca the earliest will be 9-10pm

 

[Lou-Ann]

We, too, have wrestled with this and decided that after traveling all day we will want to have a quick bite and crash. To pay deluxe rate seems wasteful when we can have a great rrom in DTD for $50. 00 less for that night. That $$ will pay for the dinners at the Candlelight Processional or Chef Mickey's......At the very least it would be a nice lunch at Crystal Palace. We feel we stand a better chance of a great room checking in early the next day than getting what is left late in the evening. We may be all wet on this, but after many many trips this is the strategy we will do this time. Do let us know how you decide to do it and how it worked for you. We all contine to learn and refine our planning as we go. Have a wondefful trip.

 

[LvsTnk]

We arrived after midnight in May at AKL. All requests were met, as noted on reservation. We had the bellman just waiting for us to check in so he could walk us up. He even got us some bottled water!

 

[GONETODISNEY]

Thanks everyone for such great replies to my post. I think you are right, paying deluxe resort price for a late arrival is a waste. I am also concerned about room location being poor if I arrive late. So I will choose a Downtown Disney Resort for the first night.
Thanks for the help.

 

[BrianD]

We are arriving at the GF after 11pm. To some it may be a waste of money, but to me its waking up the next morning, after a very long day of travel the day before, and being where you want to be and not having to think about moving to another hotel, checking in again, waiting for your room to be ready, etc. But it's really a matter of personal preference.

 

[Bob NC]

When arriving late we usually use Priceline for a hotel the first night. In April we got the Hilton at DTD for $59. Check out biddingfortravel.com for tips.

 

[eeyore0062]

Our rule of thumb is that if we are arriving after 4 pm, we stay offsite the 1st night. We usually get to the room, check in, and go to DTD for dinner, then go have a good night's sleep. Around 7 am the next morning, we check into the onsite hotel... works like a charm.

The only reason I wouldn't do it as above, is if it meant the difference in your room rate. For instance, if checking in to your onsite accomodations late at night meant that you would get value season rates for the entire stay, vs Holiday rates, you can bet we would be checking in late onsite.

 

[Lou-Ann]

Certainly there is no one right answer here and we all have different priorities. What works for one is the wrong answer for another. I, too, would much prefer to wake up and be "there" with no further moves necessary. Guess where I was coming from was the result of a late check in at a Deluxe where I had been very specific about medical necessities and it was written VERY clearly on my reservation. I was having severe asthma problems, trouble breathing and walking distances. My request was for this purpose. We arrived late afternoon to be told that another guest had had a problem with his room and DEMANDED to have the room to which we had been assigned. I was, therefore, given the farthest room away on a smoking floor........The next morning I was so sick I could not even do the parks. We were moved that night to a lovely room and treated exceptionally well. I have no complaints. I merely feel that unless you can present yourself in an earlyish time frame there are times when the staff has no control of what is left for the later guests. What happened to me would probably never happen in another 100 years. I just do not wish to deal with it after having been on the road for two days. We are Marriott Rewards members and are somewhat guaranteed our requests and room reservations so we are choosing to do that for the first night. the fact that we will save $50. is just the icing on the cake. I am getting so anxious to go for our December trip I can hardly stand it.......

 

[PrincessAurora]

I come from the West Coast and even getting in on a direct flight, with the first flight out of Oakland, I'd land around 5pm. I really don't see the need to pay for a whole day when all you are going to do is sleep.

We stay in the DTD area or the Holiday Inn for cheap, then take a cab to the resort first thing in the morning.

While I was prepared to drop off my luggage, check in, put in my room request, go to the park then return - they had a room for us at 8am that we could check into right away.

I agree that waiting for late arrival does tend to screw you up more when wanting any changes. If you don't care about stuff like that and don't mind spending the cash - then go for it.