Need help deciding on week long August plan?

[Kitty & Covs Covs]

I have plane tickets to Orlando for a Monday-Monday trip in mid August. We are APs for the first time this year, but have made it out to WDW yearly for a few years now. We went in June and have weekend trips planned in September and December for the Halloween party and Christmas party.

I can't decide whether or not to cancel/reschedule the plane tickets or move ahead planning a trip. I have the PTO to take from work, fortunately, and my 10yo daughter is out of school still with no camps planned. So I'd have to figure out something to do regardless. I am trying to keep things affordable, though, because these trips to use the APs are adding up!!

The different scenarios in my head are:

1) Stay offsite for the first time in an AirBnB and do more than just WDW, though I might end up driving if we do that (8 hour drive). Recommendations on reliable hosts? I've heard awful cancellation stories lately. What else would we do in the area (aside from the obvious Universal/Sea World things)?
2) Drive down and stay in Cocoa Beach or Tampa for half the week and then head over to WDW for half the week
3) Stay onsite and force myself to take it easy with pool days, DS visits, maybe some enchanted extras. Recommendations on itinerary that isn't just "rest days"?
4) Stay onsite and do a split stay to save my budget--what hotels do you y'all recommend? Open to moving around quite a bit to experience lots of different places. In recent years we've stayed at Pop, CBR, POR, Dolphin, All Star Movies, and WL. We'll stay at YC in September and at All Star Music in December.

Obviously I'm all over the place here. Help me out!

 

[fla4fun]

I have plane tickets to Orlando for a Monday-Monday trip in mid August. We are APs for the first time this year, but have made it out to WDW yearly for a few years now. We went in June and have weekend trips planned in September and December for the Halloween party and Christmas party.

I can't decide whether or not to cancel/reschedule the plane tickets or move ahead planning a trip. I have the PTO to take from work, fortunately, and my 10yo daughter is out of school still with no camps planned. So I'd have to figure out something to do regardless. I am trying to keep things affordable, though, because these trips to use the APs are adding up!!

The different scenarios in my head are:

1) Stay offsite for the first time in an AirBnB and do more than just WDW, though I might end up driving if we do that (8 hour drive). Recommendations on reliable hosts? I've heard awful cancellation stories lately. What else would we do in the area (aside from the obvious Universal/Sea World things)?
2) Drive down and stay in Cocoa Beach or Tampa for half the week and then head over to WDW for half the week
3) Stay onsite and force myself to take it easy with pool days, DS visits, maybe some enchanted extras. Recommendations on itinerary that isn't just "rest days"?
4) Stay onsite and do a split stay to save my budget--what hotels do you y'all recommend? Open to moving around quite a bit to experience lots of different places. In recent years we've stayed at Pop, CBR, POR, Dolphin, All Star Movies, and WL. We'll stay at YC in September and at All Star Music in December.

Obviously I'm all over the place here. Help me out!

The first thing I would do is sit down with all the people going and see what your family wants to accomplish with the trip. Once you know what you want to experience then it’s easier to figure out the other details. If they want a lot of extras, then you won’t have as much money for the hotel. If they want pool days, you would have more wiggle room on the hotel because the pool is free and you already have your tickets.

It goes without saying that if you want to stick to a budget you should be looking at value resorts instead of moderate or deluxe. I like all levels of Disney resorts, and will stay at a value to save money without any regrets. If you can get a discount on your value resort room, it may be cheaper than offsite (or at least equal price). Whenever the costs are virtually the same, I would always pick onsite over offsite. If you stay offsite, you either have to drive to the parks (no adult beverages for you) or rely on a substandard shuttle.

You won’t save a ton of money splitting a trip half beach and half Disney. Beach hotels have been full this summer and the ones I have been looking at are running $250-350 per night, more than a Disney value resort. I have been looking at Cocoa Beach hotels for a quick getaway and been surprised at the high rates.

Only you and your family can make the final decision, and there’s no right or wrong answer. Good luck!