New here, need some advice on Disneyworld

[Unregistered]

Hi I am new here, looking for some expert advice on travel to WDW. We are taking our first trip (been to DL several times) in March of 2008. Right now I am trying to figure out if staying offsite and/or at a non-disney hotel/resort is worth the savings. We are planning to go for about 1 week. I am hoping to find a hotel that offers shuttle service as I would prefer not to mess with driving to the parks (unless its not a hassle like it sounds...?) We are also thinking of renting a car for 1-2 days so we can spend some time exploring the orlando area and maybe going to the beach.

Is getting the early entrance via the disney resorts worth the extra cost? Are the shuttles timely or do you wait forever? Are there any hotels that are affordable but nice that are close enough to walk to Epcot or Disney? Which offsite hotels offer the best as far as shuttles? Everyone seems to think Pop Century is a good value resort, but what about restaurants-are there nicer restaurants nearby?

Any advice would be much appreciated. Oh and I have 2 kids, 8 and 16, so we dont need to worry about entertaining very small children.

thanks!

 

[lovetoscrap]

Welcome to the DIS! You have a lot of great questions and there is a lot to take into consideration. March will also be Spring Break time so crowds will be higher.

The best thing to do would be to officially register and then ask some specific questions on the boards specifically devoted to the Resorts. There is an Orlando Hotels boards for offsite hotels where you can get advice from those that have stayed offsite and the Disney Resorts boards where you can get advice from those that usually stay on site.

I have always stayed onsite and I am a total cheapskate! I find the convenience of the Disney busses to get back and forth is really worth it. From what I have read most of the off site shuttles only run every half hour or hour so can be much less convenient for getting back to the hotel or even to the parks when you want to. You can use Disney transportation to get from park to park once you are on site, but have to get to the Ticket and Transportation Center to get your Hotel Shuttle, from what I understand. From what I have read from other peoples experiences it seems that if you are going to stay off site you should go ahead and drive and that it isn't that much of a hassle.

There are some non Disney hotels near the parks, but I am pretty sure that none are within walking distance. And they are also more on the "high end" -- you would be better off at a Disney value if budget is a consideration.

People are mixed on their opinions of the extra magic hours. I think the Early morning ones are totally worth it. Most people don't like to get up early so the parks are really a lot less crowded for those first few hours. The evening hours are not as worth it, because the crowd levels stay pretty high. You have to decide what is best for your family.

Pop only has the counter service on site, but nice places to eat are just a bus ride away at the parks. Many nice places to eat are also at the resorts, but that is a bit trickier to get to because the buses do not go directly from resort to resort. You have to go to a park or DTD and transfer. There are no "non disney" places to eat that are close to any Disney resorts. By the way, I have a rather unpopular opinion here that All Star Movies is a much better Value than Pop and has a MUCH better Food Court!

Make sure you also check out the links to the DIS sponsers, there are some off site hotels that offer special deals to DIS members, and you might also look at www.mousesavers.com

Happy Planning!

 

[Locomigo]

Ive been twice, next month is my third.

Offsite the first time. Is was a PITA, getting up extra early to make the commute in, and getting back extra late, and it felt rushed. We also drove down that year, and decided never again to either.

Onsite the second, ASMo, it was decent and we had an enjoyable time. The busses were convenient and got us where we wanted to go in a timely fashion. The biggest headache was blood relatives, my family by choice was great and we escaped to do our own thing.
Flew in, and had a car for the week, pretty much a waste as it sat in the parking lot almost the whole time. It was fortunate for one incident, Thanksgiving and having to take my DS to the ER due to dehydration sickness. Other than that and the instances when we went to USF, IoA, and KSC/groves, the van sat.

I decided never again with the family (except DW/DS), and to utilize DME from MCO. The two days we plan to visit USF/IoA, we'll rent a car then return it. ~$50, so cheaper than a cab, and I will have Ms. Garmin running copilot for me with routes already programmed.

This will be my first time at POP, and really with the food court there, it has everything we need to grab a quick bite in the AM, and snack upon return.
For the other meals, will either use our ADRs, or hit CS when the need arises.

I found the DDP to be a great value, and it looks at minimum to be saving us 20% ~ $200, and that is with doing a lot of character meals/buffets. Going Menu driven wil save even more.

Dont forget about Downtown Disney either, lots of great places there, and only 15 min away from POP.

When I checked the transport calculator, most everything was within 25 min bus ride of POP, with a lot <15min.
Busses run every 20-30 min.
the transport calc is located on laughingplace.com

In summary:
Always fly
Take the DME from MCO
Stay On Property and utilize the transportation
If deciding to venture out of the World, rent a car for only the day(s) you need. Plenty of locations to rent from
Travel only with immediate family, unless you get along with extended.

HAVE FUN!!!!

 

[WillCAD]

Hi I am new here, looking for some expert advice on travel to WDW. We are taking our first trip (been to DL several times) in March of 2008. Right now I am trying to figure out if staying offsite and/or at a non-disney hotel/resort is worth the savings. We are planning to go for about 1 week. I am hoping to find a hotel that offers shuttle service as I would prefer not to mess with driving to the parks (unless its not a hassle like it sounds...?) We are also thinking of renting a car for 1-2 days so we can spend some time exploring the orlando area and maybe going to the beach.

Is getting the early entrance via the disney resorts worth the extra cost? Are the shuttles timely or do you wait forever? Are there any hotels that are affordable but nice that are close enough to walk to Epcot or Disney? Which offsite hotels offer the best as far as shuttles? Everyone seems to think Pop Century is a good value resort, but what about restaurants-are there nicer restaurants nearby?

Any advice would be much appreciated. Oh and I have 2 kids, 8 and 16, so we dont need to worry about entertaining very small children.

thanks!

Welcome to the DIS!

The following are my opinions only - take them with a grain of salt, and your milage may vary.

1) On-site is always better. But it's also always more expensive. Whether it's worth the extra money is purely a matter of opinion, and you'll probably make upi your own mind about it as you learn more about the on-site resorts and their perks. For me, on-site is worth the extra money sometimes, and sometimes it's not.

2) All WDW resorts are connected to the Disney transportation system, so they all have either bus, boat, or monorail transportation. Geting TO anywhere FROM anywhere is possible with WDW transportation, but some trips require a transfer.

3) Whether I stay on-site or off-site, I prefer to always rent a car. Driving around WDW is not a hassle; everything has parking, there are signs telling where to go, and the roads are extremely well-maintainted.

4) The only hotels within walking distance of any WDW park are WDW resorts. And the only WDW resorts within walking distance of the parks are the Deluxes - the more expensive places.

5) Off-site hotels all have shuttles to WDW, but they are few and far between, running on set schedules that make them tough to use. If you choose an off-site hotel, rent a car.

6) Pop Century is one of 4 Value resorts at WDW. The other three are All-Star Movies, All-Star Music, and All-Star Sports. The All-Stars are all clustered together, while Pop is in a different spot. This means that the All-Stars share busses, while Pop does not, so the Pop busses get where they are going without any other stops. This is one of the primary reasons why Pop is so popular. The other is that it's the newest of the 4 Values.

7) There are table-service (sit-down) restaurants in all of the Disney Deluxe and Moderate resorts, and in all of the parks. In the Values, there are only food courts (good ones), but dont worry - you can go to any WDW resort to eat, whether you are staying there or not. Finding a place to eat well at WDW is more a matter of narrowing down a plethora of choices. Here's a page that lists all the menus, broken down by their location:
http://allearsnet.com/menu/menus.htm

8) Extra Magic Hour - is it worth the extra cost of a WDW resort instead of an off-site hotel? By itself, no. But EMH is not the only perk you get from staying on-site; you also have Disney transportation right at the hotel (to anywhere in WDW), free round-trip transportation of you and your luggage from the airport, the ability to charge things in the parks to your room, package delivery to your room, free parking at the theme parks if you have a car, and the Disney atmosphere 24/7. I love staying on-site, and I do whenever my limited fundage allows.

But don't be afraid to stay off-site if your budget is too tight. There are plenty of nice hotels just off Disney property that are way less expensive then the Disney resorts, and only a few extra minutes drive away.

Have fun planning. I'm sure you will have lots of additional questions - just go to the appropriate board and post each one individually, and you'll get a lot of great answers for each.

 

[pktflack]

I've stayed both on and off-site. Both have their advantages. You could do a shorter stay on-site and then go to an off-site location for seeing Orlando and the beach. The extra magic hours (particularly the morning) are great. As opposed to DL, WDW is vast. The transportation is excellent but there is wait time. If you can get a good rate for a week of car rental, driving to the parks is a wonderful thing. You can also use it to dine at the various hotels or off-site. Those who stay on-site can park for free. That $11 per day can go towards the car rental.

Make sure that whatever option you take, plan your days! Knowing when parks open, when parades are and what attractions will be available during your stay can make the difference in having a great time or not. The official Disneyworld site has a schedule that you can see months in advance. Use the Park hours link.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your trip!

 

[crissichef]

Welcome...........staying on site in the whole scheme of things really does not end up costing more im my opinion. If you stay at one of the value resorts, it is really about the same as having to pay for transportation from the Airport, etc. I really like Pop because it is by itself and does not share buses with any other resorts. I checked it out a couple of years ago....the offsite hotels versus Disney and Disney was only a few $$ more and we would not have to rent a car, so it actually worked out better for us.

Good luck and happy planning !

 

[noahdove]

Wow the only way to go is to stay at a resort. I stay at a value resort and by staying at a Disney resort there are a few perks, like extra hours, awesome shuttle every so many minutes and great food courts, great heated pools. You don't say how you are getting there but if you fly, be sure to use the Magical Express. Once you let your luggage at check in at the airport, you don't handle it until you arrive home at the airport. Disney does the rest Check out the allearsnet site as they have menus and the prices of the food including the resorts Buy the refillable mug and that way, everyone can fill the mug before they leave for the parks and then use it later to fill with water for the fountains The bus service from the resorts, doesn't cost anything, and they are very convienent....no better way to get around...Try to find Steve Birnbaum's Unofficial guide to Disney..great idea and tips to make the most of your time at Disney...park hopper pass also the best way to go Have a great vacation.