Non-Disney hotel but right next to Downtown Disney...

[Traveliz]

Well, you will also get

1. Interior corridords
2. A coffee pot
3. Often a fridge
4. Rewards points for free stays
5. No outside walk in the rain to your building
6 WIRELESS internet (what a concept)
7. A QUEEN size bed
8. A resturnat
9. Room Service

and so on...

Some of us don't really think the "values" are the "be all and end all"
(AKA as "if it's Disney it must be better") And I generally do pay about the same for a DTD as a "Value" and get more value for my $$ IMHO (Sorry putting bright paint and a staute of Buzz don't make a hotel worth a lot of money. Fun to visit, but...)


By the way the Hilto gives you EMH and transport to EMH.

I agree with all your points and myself prefer the Hilton to onsite hotels HOWEVER the OP said she doesn't think she can afford an onsite hotel this trip and my point is the Hilton (unless staying on points) is likely to be more expensive than a Disney Value Resort.

Additionally I am pretty sure the Hilton charges for internet...its been about 6 months since I stayed there and I maybe confused but that might be a consideration.

They also charge for parking (but I don't believe the OP is going to have a car).

Liz

 

[Tiger926]

I agree with all your points and myself prefer the Hilton to onsite hotels HOWEVER the OP said she doesn't think she can afford an onsite hotel this trip and my point is the Hilton (unless staying on points) is likely to be more expensive than a Disney Value Resort.

Additionally I am pretty sure the Hilton charges for internet...its been about 6 months since I stayed there and I maybe confused but that might be a consideration.

They also charge for parking (but I don't believe the OP is going to have a car).

Liz

ITA! And I forgot to mention this in my last post. That Hilton will probably more than likely be more than a Value (I'm pretty sure they charge the daily resort fee too).

Hope OP is able to find a suitable hotel in her budget! Tiger

 

[jgates]

I stayed at the former Courtyard also in DTD - I wouldn't want to do it again. The busses at that time stopped at every hotel I believe, except maybe one. It took forever to get to the parks or get anywhere. You had to make sure you were back at the bus stop at the appropriate time to catch the bus or you waited another hour. (We also had some issues the 1st 2 nights - no A/C - but the problem was in the transportation.)

We have stayed a couple of times (Bowl game trips, lead nights, etc.) at the Springhill Suites & the Fairfield in at Little Lake Bryan. This gives me my Marriott points, plus both of those two offer a continental breakfast. We only stay when we have a vehicle (either drove ourselves or rental), and thus the continental breakfast that we get more than offsets the parking fee at the parks for the days we go there (and is a bonus on any other day). I like Marriott props as they are clean & consistent quality.

I would NOT recommend using Marriott points for a stay there though. As it is a prime tourist destination, normally the points required for a stay are significantly higher than they would be for a room at the same cash price in a different location. We paid out of pocket for our room (AAA discount) at LLB both times & used our points instead at St. Louis - came out much better in the pocketbook that way.

 

[maggiew]

I agree with all your points and myself prefer the Hilton to onsite hotels HOWEVER the OP said she doesn't think she can afford an onsite hotel this trip and my point is the Hilton (unless staying on points) is likely to be more expensive than a Disney Value Resort.

Additionally I am pretty sure the Hilton charges for internet...its been about 6 months since I stayed there and I maybe confused but that might be a consideration.

They also charge for parking (but I don't believe the OP is going to have a car).

Liz

I think the OP said she had Hilton reward points. So some of the nights would be free.

Maggie

 

[Traveliz]

I think the OP said she had Hilton reward points. So some of the nights would be free.

Maggie

That would help - those Hiltons run 40,000 points a night typically though (ouch).

Liz

 

[Maybelle]

OP here.

Thank you all for the input.

I had not intended to begin an argument by asking this question, and certainly I am not in any way meaning to bash the Disney values by asking the question. Could I have done all the research myself to get the answers I was looking for, yes, however, I do think that you don't get the "real" perspective until you get the info from those who have direct experience, which is what I was looking to get, as I have never stayed offsite, and was curious if I might get a better deal making a trip this year possible (through the use of reward pts, earning of reward pts, or getting a deal through travelzoo or other program). And I DO intend to do all the "homework" in researching prices and such to see if a trip is reasonable at this time. What I was looking for was if this is an avenue I would be willing to pursue as an option.

Since I received the info I was looking for, I will now bow out.

Thanks.