Little Help Here??

[indimom]

I'm planning a trip for June 2010 and I've got a key decision to make. We are a family of four and last visited Disney World in 2005. We stayed at Pop and had the dining plan. We really loved the simplicity of the trip. One price for everything, no driving, meals included, etc.
Now, the kids are a lot bigger and we're planning a 16 day trip (14 days at the world). I'm concerned about sharing one small room for that long, so I started looking at larger accomodations. The only places we can afford would be off site. The one I like the best from photos and reviews is Lake Buena Vista Resort and Spa. Mapquest puts it 8 miles from Disney World.
Here's my concern. Am I going to be dissapointed? Will the driving be a pain? Will the roads be congested and confusing? (We do have GPS now, which I'm sure will help. Didn't have this option last time.)
Will staying outside the world make the trip so much more "complicated" that it won't have the same magic?
Also, we won't have the dining plan which we really loved the last time. Can we still eat one or two meals a day within the parks/resorts without completely blowing the budget???

I would love any advice from folks who have done trips both ways??? Which did you prefer???? Thanks so much!

 

[minimandymouse]

How old are the children?

 

[sydneysmom]

Have you considered staying at All Star Music in the family suite ? (I've never stayed there but have read great things about the suites) they're larger than the normal rooms . here's the link :
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/resorts/all-star-music-resort/rates-rooms/ (hopefully I'm allowed to put that link.....)

that way, you could stay on the grounds and not drive each other nuts! Plus, do Disney Dining !

there's also the Villas (WL, BCV, AKV, BWV) and the WL campground. SO there's LOTS of Disney options so you can stay on property and enjoy all the pixie dust !!

Hope your vacation is wonderful !!
Jill

 

[mickeymaker2003]

How much time are you actually planning to spend in the room? If you are planning to be out most of the time, I think it is workable. You could talk to the kids and see what they say. If staying onsite is important to you, it may not really be that big of deal as long as you can are okay with the two full size beds.

You could also check into the price of renting points for DVC.

 

[The Disney Dad]

I'm planning a trip for June 2010 and I've got a key decision to make. We are a family of four and last visited Disney World in 2005. We stayed at Pop and had the dining plan. We really loved the simplicity of the trip. One price for everything, no driving, meals included, etc.
Now, the kids are a lot bigger and we're planning a 16 day trip (14 days at the world). I'm concerned about sharing one small room for that long, so I started looking at larger accomodations. The only places we can afford would be off site. The one I like the best from photos and reviews is Lake Buena Vista Resort and Spa. Mapquest puts it 8 miles from Disney World.
Here's my concern. Am I going to be dissapointed? Will the driving be a pain? Will the roads be congested and confusing? (We do have GPS now, which I'm sure will help. Didn't have this option last time.)
Will staying outside the world make the trip so much more "complicated" that it won't have the same magic?
Also, we won't have the dining plan which we really loved the last time. Can we still eat one or two meals a day within the parks/resorts without completely blowing the budget???

I would love any advice from folks who have done trips both ways??? Which did you prefer???? Thanks so much!

Check out Buena Vista Suites. They are close to WDW and offer much more space for the money you pay. They have free breakfast and great pools. If you eat a big breakfast, stick with counter service and a few sit downs at WDW and eat a few meals outside the park (much cheaper) you should come out ahead! Driving around WDW is not that difficult ... the signs are plentiful and your GPS should get you where you need to go. The traffic flows pretty smoothly all day long! I prefer driving myself that taking the Disney cattle trailers, I mean buses!

 

[Darcy03231]

We went in August 2007 for 16 days. I ended up renting a vacation home (5 bedrooms, 3 baths and a private pool) for a fraction of what it would have cost to stay on-site. We all agreed it was one of the best vacations we ever had. I found driving around the Orlando area to be very easy. Everything was very well marked. It took us about 15 min to get from our villa to WDW main gate. Actually, I think we were there, parked and in the parks faster than it took us to take the bus from the All Star resorts.

I really liked having all the room, our own pool, the full kitchen and the washer/dryer, not to mention the tv's in every bedroom - no kids fight over what they want to watch. It was really nice to be able to get up in the morning, get the coffee going, get ready, have breakfast and hit the parks. I found we saved a lot of money on food as we ate at the house quite a bit.

 

[AntePrincess]

Having done both, the simplicity of staying on-site is worth the bill for me. I would go with the family suite recommended above, and we are a family that spends a bit of time in our hotel rooms unwinding at the end of the day.

My experience with staying off site, while it was still a wonderful vacation, was that I'm not fond of busy neon highwayscapes, I preferred not having to navigate a large parking lot in the morning, and that Disney had better menu options than the dirt cheap Sizzler breakfast buffet off site.

 

[buzznina]

First, have you looked into ASMU suites or FW Cabins?
The biggest issue of staying off site (for us) is that if one of the group wanted to head back to the hotel/house earlier then the others. You either had to all go back and stay or drop that person off and then drive back or that person had to take a cab. We had this issue when we went to WDW with 2 other couples and only had 1 vehicle. We are heading to CSR in 10 days and it will be myself, DW, DD(5), DD(3 months) and my sister and I can see me or my DW heading back to the resort while the rest stays at the park, but all we will have to do is hop on a bus. Other reasons; you use your own gas and parking at the parks is now $14.

 

[duffy]

We first went when we were a family of 4, stayed at the All-Star Sports, and looooved it! The only dining plan then was very expensive, so we paid out of pocket for all our meals.

Next trip, we were a family of 5, so we stayed offsite, and I vowed never again...at least not when we were taking kids. The convenience of being onsite was worth it to us. We've only stayed onsite since. But, you will hear just as many say that they would rather stay offsite and save money. It's a very personal decision.

In a few years, any trips I make will probably be for just me and my husband, and I can definitely see us staying offsite. When grandkids start showing up and demanding their trips , we'll probably go back to onsite only.

(by the way, if you're going to be in the parks for a total of 14 days, is it cheaper for you to get an annual pass than to buy 14 days worth of tickets? I think so, but don't know for sure, and I'm sure someone here will.)

 

[Mrs D]

Another option might be to look into renting point for a DVC resort (aka Deluxe Villas).

Here's an overview on renting points. http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-vacation-club/RentTrade-FAQ.htm
Here's where you can check out points for rent http://disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=29

 

[indimom]

Thank you for all the input. I should have mentioned the kids will be 12 and 10when we go, and we won't be splitting up unless it's one parent with one child. I'm not thinking of staying off-site for any other reason than Space/Separate bedrooms. I found a two-bedroom condo for the same price as a regular value resort room. I've looked at the cabins, bringing a camper, renting DVC, etc., and they all end up costing considerably more than the values. I really don't want to spend that much, especially for a two-week trip.
I've priced out doing meals OOP vs. the Dining Plan and that really ends up being about the same, so it's a non-issue I guess. We just really enjoyed the paying in advance and not "thinking" about how much things cost when we had the dining plan, if you know what I mean.
Finally, as far as tickets go, I'm planning to get 10 day MYW with Hopper and WP&M. We did not do the water parks or disney quest on our last trip, and I know the kids would love these. So I figured we can have four "slow/lazy" days to visit those and do some other simple stuff like putt putt, rent a boat, the Chip & Dale campfire, visit the Boardwalk, whatever we feel like.
Thanks again for the advice and any other suggestions, feelings greatly appreciated!

 

[Bastiansmom]

I think you can make your ticket last 20 days.
The WPF&M tickets are "separate" from your park tickets.
If you just use a WPF&M ticket (not a park ticket) that doesn't count as one of your 10 days.
I hope that makes sense.