Off site hotel night before check-in

[mousefan215]

Where do you guys stay if you choose to stay a night before your Resort check-in? We will be driving from Louisiana( 12-13 hr drive with stops) with a 1 yo and 3 yo. My husband and I are contemplating driving most of the way the day before our check in at BLT. I can't justify $800/Night to just sleep. We've stopped in Ocala,FL before, but got an awful hotel off of the interstate. I'm curious to see where you guys stay and what hotels do I can book ahead of time instead of just trying to find something...TIA!

 

[maxiesmom]

I'd stay at a Disney value.

 

[Babsy]

I'd stay at a Disney value.

Agreed!

We would stay at All Star Sports or preferred at ASMu/ASMo.

OER an ASMu suite, if you want extra space

 

[bigbabyblues]

ASMovies

 

[Trip planner]

I would drive 9 hours one day stay over night and drive the rest of the way and check in to your hotel. I research the stop and stay somewhere solid for about $100. Hyatt place or whatever I can use an orbitz promo code.

 

[MudQueen22]

We did similarly.
We drove from Texas to Lake City with our small children, then left the next morning.
I wasn't crazy about the Days Inn, but it worked.

 

[MudQueen22]

Where do you guys stay if you choose to stay a night before your Resort check-in? We will be driving from Louisiana( 12-13 hr drive with stops) with a 1 yo and 3 yo. My husband and I are contemplating driving most of the way the day before our check in at BLT. I can't justify $800/Night to just sleep. We've stopped in Ocala,FL before, but got an awful hotel off of the interstate. I'm curious to see where you guys stay and what hotels do I can book ahead of time instead of just trying to find something...TIA!

May I ask where you stayed in Ocala that was awful? We might want to steer clear of it in the future.

 

[HopperFan]

May I ask where you stayed in Ocala that was awful? We might want to steer clear of it in the future.

Both Ocala and Lake City have some very nice name brand hotels along with others. A few in Ocala are pretty new. Have stayed in both often with no issues.

That said I prefer to get all the way to Lake Buena Vista and stay offsite. I pack a small bag for just the night with our toiletries so we don't have to haul every thing inside. I have stayed in Disney Springs hotels and a variety of offsite where I can get a nice comfy bed and hopefully breakfast before we head to WDW hotel to check in.

 

[Shellyred8]

If one of the WDW Value resorts is available, that would be a good option financially. We have stayed at some of the Disney Springs area hotels, but you have to watch out for extra fees (Parking fee, resort fee) at those. Those fees can add up to an extra $20 - 50 extra more per night. The WDW Value resorts don't have the extra fees.

Have a great trip!

 

[AngiTN]

We stay in the Value resorts for 1 night anytime our flight lands after 8:00 PM. I am no fan of Value resorts and full size beds but we can manage for 1 night. We get them for less than $100. Really can't find much off site for less than that. At least with a Disney Value resort I know what we are getting. And we get ME that night and they'll move our bags for us.

 

[mousefan215]

Thank you guys! Staying at a Value Resort sounds like a good idea! (If we can make the entire drive in one day) I did look into the Disney Springs Area Hotels and with the parking/fees, it's not really a great deal...

May I ask where you stayed in Ocala that was awful? We might want to steer clear of it in the future.

If I remember right (it was several years ago) it's was a Howard Johnson. Apparently Ocala is the Horse capital of the US?? There was some type of huge show/convention going on and every hotel we called/stopped at was full... it was very late, so we just settled in the first one we came across that had a vacancy... it's was very dirty and old... I don't think I slept a wink, would have done better sleeping in our car!(this was before we had children)Lol... but I learned my lesson! We will have a reservation this time!

 

[mousefan215]

So if we don't drive all the way to WDW, would Ocala be the best place to stop, since it's only an hour and a half from Disney? Or am I missing another town that would be better/easier right off the interstate?

 

[ncc1701]

If you think you can make it to WDW stay at a Value or Moderate Resort if they are available and meet the budget.If not read reviews on TripAdvisor and other sites to get an idea of the area you are looking to stay. We stay at hotels/motels that are part of
Marriott, Hilton or Hyatt . We have found them to be good to outstanding. If you check their websites any fees or parking cost are disclosed .

 

[dolewhipsareforlovers]

Where do you guys stay if you choose to stay a night before your Resort check-in? We will be driving from Louisiana( 12-13 hr drive with stops) with a 1 yo and 3 yo. My husband and I are contemplating driving most of the way the day before our check in at BLT. I can't justify $800/Night to just sleep. We've stopped in Ocala,FL before, but got an awful hotel off of the interstate. I'm curious to see where you guys stay and what hotels do I can book ahead of time instead of just trying to find something...TIA!

We are doing the same thing. We decided to stay at a hotel the night we arrive and our last day(we will check out and then go spend the rest of the day at the parks). I did a lot of research looking for hotels and the values didn't seem like a good option to me. For the time we are going they would still be around $140 per night. We are staying at a Drury Inn near Universal. It will cost us around $99 per night with no resort fees. The reviews for it were pretty high so I think it will be good for the night. If the cost of the values comes down before we go I might consider changing but right now it just doesn't seem like a good option.

 

[AllieBoo]

We stayed at a very nice Hampton Inn in Ocala on our way to Disney last trip. I believe it was the Ocala-Belleview Hampton Inn. They also have a really good continental breakfast.

We drive from Alabama and like you, we have had some bad experiences at hotels along the way. After a nightmarish stay at a Days Inn in Lake City one year, when everything else was booked, we now make reservations ahead of time and only stay at a Hampton or Marriott hotel.

We have also driven straight through and stayed at an All Stars before, and that was good too if you think you can make it all the way.

 

[JETSDAD]

Last trip we ended up getting into Florida early so spent a relaxing day at Hilton Bonnet Creek. Took a shuttle over to DS in the evening and then were really close the following morning to start our Disney vacation.

 

[nkereina]

We stay in the Value resorts for 1 night anytime our flight lands after 8:00 PM. I am no fan of Value resorts and full size beds but we can manage for 1 night. We get them for less than $100. Really can't find must off site for less than that. At least with a Disney Value resort I know what we are getting. And we get ME that night and they'll move our bags for us.

This. By staying at a value resort, you can wake up the next morning and head out to a park and they will move your bags for you. While you'll be "homeless" for a bit, it's no problem if you're spending the day at the park and then can just go over to BLT when you're done at the park. Since you'll have a car, you could also keep your luggage in your trunk while you're at the park without having bell services move anything for you, but I'd just be wary of leaving anything out in the open or even the temperature affecting any toiletries, makeup, etc.

 

[Quellman]

We stayed at a very nice Hampton Inn in Ocala on our way to Disney last trip. I believe it was the Ocala-Belleview Hampton Inn. They also have a really good continental breakfast.

This is where my inlaws stay every time they drive down. We make it one fell swoop, but we are usually traveling to my mothers home not much further so stopping is a waste for us.

 

[mousefan215]

Thank you guys! Very helpful!!!

 

[Kagoguen]

We're driving in from east Tennessee, about a 9 hour drive. We're a family of 5 and booked Best Western near Universal, it had 3.5 out of 5 stars and could accommodate all of us in one room and comes with a full breakfast. I was able to get gov rate of $89 but believe rack rate was $100. I couldn't see paying the ASMU suite rate when all we were going to do was pretty much go right to bed