Need somewhere with a free shuttle

[mcz100]

I have only stayed on Disney property before. We might do a last minute trip for October 6-11. Have some airline vouchers I need to use.

DH wants to save money by staying offsite...Only wants to pay around $100/night. Main problem is we have 5 in our family so we can't do value resort w/out needing a suite. POR is $1000 for that time so a bit more than he wants to spend...

Wyndham Bonnet is not available for 5 people during that time...and also looks more expensive.

Has anyone stayed at Holiday Inn club Vacations at orange lake? That is what he found last night but the reviews online horrified me. I also think you have to pay each day to use the shuttle?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. We have stayed at CBR and POR in the past...

 

[mcz100]

Also, we won't have a rental car so that is why I need somewhere that has a free shuttle....

 

[JimMIA]

Wyndham Bonnet is not available for 5 people during that time...and also looks more expensive.

Where did you get your prices? If you got them from Wyndham, of course they're high. But if you rent from an owner, or one of the rental brokers used by many here, the prices will be less.

Checking availability on the Wyndham owners site, I DID find availability for owners checking in on October 6...but all of the options included a change of rooms during the stay.

However, if you have some flexibility on dates, there;s plenty of room at the inn. When I chose +/- 4 days from October 6, I got dozens of options, including several with no move involved. October 6 is a Thursday, but if you check in on Friday the 7th, there are 10 choices; on Saturday the 8th, looks like at least that many available.

Also, if you look for 5-6 nights instead of 7, you lose some of the moves and have more choices.

 

[danceintherain]

The Mousesavers.com newsletter often has very discounted rates at the Doubletree in DTD. This is what we did a couple years ago, when my parents were footing the bill. I believe we paid $89/night for a suite that slept 6 people. It's within walking distance of Downtown Disney and runs shuttles every 30 minutes to the parks (shared by some of the other DTD hotels). The buses are shared by two parks - one for MK (TTC) & AK and another for Epcot and DHS. We didn't try to go to the Water Parks, so I don't know how that is handled. For non-Disney transportation, it was fairly good, and the suites were spacious.
The Mousesaver's rate also includes the continental breakfast for free. The "hot" items required an additional charge, which we ended up paying for a couple times.

We enjoyed our stay there. It was comfortable, clean, and more space that you get for the same price at Disney. I still prefer on property, but it was a nice alternative.

We got there by taking city bus 111 from the airport. It took about an hour to get there (lots of stops), but the bus stop is right in front of the Doubletree. We made sure to pack light, only in carryons, so we didn't have too much luggage on the bus, and it worked out really well. The bus driver was very nice and helpful. It was $2 (or something) per person each way.

 

[Brian Noble]

Honestly, something has to give. Either you need to get a rental car, or you need to stay onsite. What's more, once you've paid for airport transfers, you're halfway to the cost of a rental car anyway, and may as well just get one. It will be vastly more convenient than trying to rely even on the DTD shuttles.

I suppose you could do the public bus/scheduled shuttle deal, but if it were me I'd save up for a little while loner until I could go down with a slightly larger budget.

I DID find availability for owners checking in on October 6...but all of the options included a change of rooms during the stay.

As an aside, my understanding is that Bonnet does not manage inventory week-by-week in the way most of the Wyndham resorts do. To the best of my knowledge, none of these split stays have ever involved a move. Of course, I don't book them for myself, because I would end up being the exception that proves the rule.

 

[newmouse2008]

Hilton Bonnet Creek has a wonderful shuttle system. And you get the feel of being on property. The pool is amazing and kids eat free at the buffet.

T.

 

[JimMIA]

As an aside, my understanding is that Bonnet does not manage inventory week-by-week in the way most of the Wyndham resorts do.

I think you're right Brian, but availability changes drastically with your checkin date. From Thursday to Friday, it went from 1-2, with moves, to 10. It may not be managed by weeks, but the bulk of the checkins/checkouts are on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday...so that's when more inventory becomes available.

To the best of my knowledge, none of these split stays have ever involved a move. Of course, I don't book them for myself, because I would end up being the exception that proves the rule.

I've never booked one of those either, but I've been told, both by Wyndham reservations and by folks on TUG, that "stay includes a move" means exactly what it says. I'm like you, I'm not going to test it...especially if I can move my checkin one day and avoid it.

 

[Brian Noble]

availability changes drastically with your checkin date.

I wasn't speaking to the fluctuation of inventory; just the fact that almost no one ever has to move on a split-reservation at Bonnet. And, yes, that is very different from other Wyndham resorts.

 

[mcz100]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I know we wouldn't want to change room during our stay. With 3 kids that would be a mess.

Does anyone know about how much it costs to get from the airport to the hotel. I guess I was thinking most hotels would have free shuttles but I guess I am mistaken. Again, I have only stayed on site so I have no idea how this off site stuff works. I will look into the Hilton Bonnet Creek.

I'm not sure though....I found availability at Port Orleans Riverside...$1000/5 nights. I am thinking that would be cheaper than having to rent a car and more convenient.

 

[JimMIA]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I know we wouldn't want to change room during our stay. With 3 kids that would be a mess.

Right, but there's plenty of availability if you shift your arrival date one day...and with no moves. If you can't, you can't -- but if you are even a little flexible, you won't have to move.

I will look into the Hilton Bonnet Creek.

It's going to be more than the Wyndham + I'm pretty sure you'll have to pay for parking (free at Wyndham).

I found availability at Port Orleans Riverside...$1000/5 nights. I am thinking that would be cheaper than having to rent a car and more convenient.

Nothing is more convenient than having a car, whether you are onsite or offsite. You'd have to check the rates, but as Brian said earlier, by the time you pay for airport transfers, you're already probably halfway there to the cost of a rental car. AND, in addition, having a car opens up a whole host of convenient and less-expensive dining options offsite.

On the question of "convenience," from Bonnet Creek (and probably from Windsor Hills), I can be parked at any WDW theme park in 15 minutes. Parked. Someone bussing will probably still be standing at the bus stop.

For $1,000 offsite, you can do a lot better than a room at POR. You can probably get a WBC TWO bedroom for five nights for $500-$600. And Bonnet Creek is not the only option -- there are LOTS of other options.

I'm not trying to sell you WBC. It's just the offsite resort I'm most familiar with, and IMHO, it's vastly superior to any Disney mod resort. You might want to go to wyndhamvacationresorts.com and click on the "Explore Our Resorts" buttion and check it out. Just so you know, all the cool stuff they show -- lazy rivers (2), mini-golf, BBQ grills, etc -- are FREE.

 

[keypooh90]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I know we wouldn't want to change room during our stay. With 3 kids that would be a mess.

Does anyone know about how much it costs to get from the airport to the hotel. I guess I was thinking most hotels would have free shuttles but I guess I am mistaken. Again, I have only stayed on site so I have no idea how this off site stuff works. I will look into the Hilton Bonnet Creek.

I'm not sure though....I found availability at Port Orleans Riverside...$1000/5 nights. I am thinking that would be cheaper than having to rent a car and more convenient.

I'd go with Riverside! It is currently being rehabbed and is beautiful! We love POR/POFQ. The foodcourts are great and the pool is absolutely great. We feel like the location of POR/POFQ can't be beat as it is centrally located to most of the parks on property!

 

[Darcy03231]

Years ago (before ME) as I recall a shared airport shuttle from the airport to WDW ran about $45 each way for three people.

Here's a site that will give you an idea:

http://www.cityonexpress.com/?gclid=CL3uw_Wig6oCFcTe4AodVQ6rzQ

 

[powellrj]

You might try Blue Heron, they have a free shuttle to the parks and its big enough and it was pretty cheap the last time we stayed there!

 

[Brian Noble]

I'm not sure though....I found availability at Port Orleans Riverside...$1000/5 nights. I am thinking that would be cheaper than having to rent a car and more convenient.

My advice: unless you are ready to try a rental car, and want to give that a shot, I suspect you'll be happier at POR, as long as it is in your budget.