Off-site is the only way to go

[sonny]

(I also posted this on another site) We have always stayed on Disney property (and I am talking from the early 70's). This year a friend gave me her week at Orange Lake Resort and I am hooked. The place is huge but you can really enjoy the spaciousness. And a dishwaher and w/d and 3 tvs with 3 remotes (always a fight over these). It was great, especially with children (or tired grandfathers) who can take a nap in a separate room without the rest of the family disturbing them. We stayed at OL for 5 nights and when it was time for us to check into our room at Port Orleans, my son's family would not go. They liked the villa so much better than those tiny rooms at Disney. For those of you who can't decide if you want to stay off-site, take the plunge, especially if you have more than 2 people staying in a room or (like us) can only stand that closeness for a few days then need some space. I'm not just pushing OL because I realize we might just have been lucky with our location but we saw quite a few of these big resorts, close enough to Disney (within 10 min), like the Sheraton, Silver Lake etc that looked great. What you gain in space is worth the Disney parking fee.

 

[Cherylzw]

Sonny

You might even look into renting a private vacation home with your own private pool and spa. They are also in their own resorts. Great for families.

Now that is luxury.


Cheryl

 

[spiceycat]

off site is also much, much cheaper.....

www.skyauction.com

the timeshares (which is what OL is) are the ones that say 7 days

also very close to WDW is Silver Lakes, Magic Tree, Westgate (you don't want to stay here) - this is the AK side

from the DD side - Cypress Pointe, blue Tree, Sheraton Vistana Resort, Embassy, several Marriott, Bryan's Spanish Cove (older but still okay).

all about 10 minutes or less to WDW property.

for privately owned rentals
www.vrbo.com

 

[JohnnySharp2]

We always stay in a villa and love the extra room and privacy you get.

 

[crjack]

We're an off-site family too! We could never go back to a regular room for 4 people and even at a value resort the price for 2 connecting rooms is too high compared to all of the fabulous off-site options. We like having a little kitchen area too - I don't cook much on vacation but for breakfast items and snacks and water it's ideal.

We've done timeshare/condos as well as villa homes and love them both. When it's just the four of us the homes are a little too big so we stay in a 2 or 3 bedroom condo type unit. When other people join us we can't wait to rent a vacation home.

 

[disneysteve]

We are offsite only also. I've said here many times I can't think of anything that would entice me to stay onsite again. I would honestly rather pay to stay offsite than stay onsite for free. Disney just can't compete with the accomodations and amenities available offsite.

I think Disney missed the boat by never building a family-friendly budget hotel. Rather than building Pop Century, they should have made that a budget suite hotel. I can get a 2-bed, 2-bath condo offsite for under $40/nite. Disney has nothing that can even come close to that.

 

[mrsstats]

I just returned from my first stay onsite at Disney. I won the trip and we stayed 4 nights at the Boardwalk. In the past, we have stayed at either Orange Lake or Westgate. Staying at the resort was nice. Being able to get into the parks without paying the parking fees was great. But I will tell you we missed having the large living space we are used to. But to each his own. I can see from both sides the advantages. For us, it is timeshare all the way.

 

[crjack]

We've always wanted to try one of the 2-bedroom villas on-site at the Boardwalk, Beach Club, etc. but one night would be equal to or more than what we have payed for a week in many places! Even if money weren't an issue I just don't think I could ever bring myself to pay that much for one night.

I'd also love to try any of the Marriott resorts but even with my DH's reward points we're not there yet.

We found the Orlando area to have some great off-site resorts that are available at a great price. Like many cities, Boston is an expensive area to live and visit so family and friends are always shocked and a little suspicious when we tell them about some of our trips.

VRBO has been great for us and we have used it for other trips as well as Florida. We found some great properties here in New England after discovering it for Orlando. Of course Skyauction is almost impossible to beat if you find an auction that works for you. Hotelkingdom also offers some great rates, especially on Cypress Point.

Disney Steve...I couldnt agree more on Disney's accomodation choices for families. We are only a family of four but for a family of 5 or more the choices are very limiting and require most families to use cots, trundles, etc. and share one small bathrom. All that for a lot of $$$$ and in my opinion not too many perks to go along with it. I think places such as HIFS, prior to it's recent change, filled a real void for many families. It's unfortunate that the rates there have climbed so much with it's conversion to the Nick Hotel but there are still plenty of reasonable off-site choices for people who do a little research.

 

[kilee]

We've done both onsite and offsite. I think they both have their advantages. I do agree though that I lost no magic by staying offsite. We've done 2 different rental villa's. One through orlandovillas.com and one through vrbo.com. Both were great! I've also stayed in quite a few offsite hotels and enjoyed them. I really liked the Sheraton Safari for the price we got (via priceline).

 

[Maistre Gracey]

We are offsite only also. I've said here many times I can't think of anything that would entice me to stay onsite again. I would honestly rather pay to stay offsite than stay onsite for free. Disney just can't compete with the accomodations and amenities available offsite.

Steve, I certainly respect your opinion, and I'm not trying to change anyone's mind, BUT...

This post and others confuse me a bit. I know you are aware that Disney has one, two, and three bedroom grand villas on property. I realize they cost an arm and a leg compared to off site, but the tone here is that they don't exist.

I'm with you in one sense though. Even if it's just my wife and me, we still get a one bedroom villa (DVC) instead of a hotel room. Any more than the two of us, and it's a two bedroom. Once in a while we venture to the deluxes for a bit of variety, but you just can't beat having a the extra space.... Not to mention the washer & dryer.

MG

 

[JohnnySharp2]

We had a look round the Boardwalk on our August vacation, the rooms are nice and you get cooking facilities/washer & dryer etc - the main advantage though is having entertainment on site.

We always rent a villa and love the extra freedom/facilities and privacy - it just cannot be beat.
The only disadvantage is you have to drive everywhere, our son often gets tired after a busy day playing or visiting a theme park, so often he does not want to go out in the evening and I sometimes find myself going out on my own.

The Boardwalk has the ESPN sports bar plus shops/restaurants etc but the prices can be $350 a night, or more - so it's a villa for us, better value for rmoney.

 

[mickeymousefan]

We too have decided an offsite condo is the way to go!!!! We did two trips to ASMo with our 2 DD's. Then, this past summer, we were generously given a timeshare week at Summer Bay...... what a difference!!! DH and I had a seperate bedroom with king bed and balcony. We had a fully stocked kitchen and washer and dryer in our unit. We saved a ton of money on food.
I couldn't believe all the other options for food, entertainment and shopping there were outside DW. We really enjoyed seeing the rest of the area.

 

[lisajl]

It's nice to hear that you don't lose any magic by staying offsite.
Our first two times was offsite, but that was before Ak and MGM.
Then 3 years ago we stayed at POR. It was wonderful.
This time it's Buena Vista Suites. Not a timeshare, but more room than a Disney hotel that we could aford onsite.

Thanks for posting...I will pay the extra for parking, but DH and I will have our own bedroom...priceless!

 

[disneysteve]

I know you are aware that Disney has one, two, and three bedroom grand villas on property. I realize they cost an arm and a leg compared to off site, but the tone here is that they don't exist.

That's true. I didn't mean to imply that onsite suites don't exist but they aren't a feasible option for most guests due to cost. Out of curiosity, I just checked prices for a week in May. A 2-br villa at Boardwalk Villas would be $5,814.76! Compare that to a 2-br villa offsite (less than 5 minutes from the parks) for $260 for the week. I realize there may be some perks to staying onsite, but I can't believe those perks are worth an extra $5,500.

And to be honest, we actually prefer staying offsite. We like to get away from the hustle and bustle. We like being able to park right outside our door and not having to deal with valets and bellhops. We like not having to worry about a maid coming in every day (I don't know if the onsite villas have daily maid service or not). And even when we stay onsite, which we have done several times, we still drive everywhere because we don't care for Disney transportation.

So yes, there are multi-room villas/suites available onsite, but you won't ever find my family in one of them.

 

[JoBird]

Anyone know how long it takes to drive from Orange Lake to WDW?
We are staying there the first of the year, and are excited about it! I have heard GREAT things about this place, FIL owns a timeshare and he traded for this one. That being said, he told me that OL is harder to get than the average time share b/c it is so nice. We have stayed off site every time, including our Honeymoon many years ago. There have been nice ones, and some not-so-nice ones too. It's kind of luck of the draw. We would LOVE to stay onsite, but with 5 of us in the family, the amount we would have to pay for accomodations just is crazy for us. Besides, I am USED to having a lot of space at home and cannot imagine the grumpiness of my family if we had to squeeze into a small space for a week. ESPECIALLY with tired kids (and Momma, too!)

 

[spiceycat]

Steve I really think you would love Disney's OKW - it has parking right outside.

I still love it.

but for bargins - you can't beat skyauction or RCI last call.

even using points - Okw (offseason) 1-bedroom will be $160 per night. I can get an off site 1-bedroom for $149 for the WEEK.... I can get a 2-bedroom for $199 (rci) or $211 (okay up to $260) - OKW would be $220 per night.

on the $160 or $220 per night is only Sun-thurs night - fri/sat will be $400 and $540 for each night.....

now onsite does have a bunch of stuff that I love - WDW transportation, extra magic hours (both morning and evening), package delivery, free valet parking at DVC resorts, discount of annual passes, etc....

however I love to travel with Spicey, my cat. He can't stay at a WDW or DVC resort - so it is generally FW kennel....

Off site he can stay and does at Celebration WOrld resort!!! the extra charge is $50 per week. As long as he is alive - I am mostly an offsite person myself - despite owning DVC.

oh since I own - I am cheap and I only stay in studio at OKW - so my bottom line it not that bad even for staying on property. I brought back in 93. So I am only paying my maintence fees - so my bottom line is $4 * 8 points - $32 for a studio per night (it was less but DVC increased the maintence fees at OKW big time) - however for even 5 days - $4 * 40 points = $160.

I might at some time in the future - only stay onsite again - but not while Spicey lives.

 

[disneysteve]

Steve I really think you would love Disney's OKW - it has parking right outside.

even using points - Okw (offseason) 1-bedroom will be $160 per night. I can get an off site 1-bedroom for $149 for the WEEK.... I can get a 2-bedroom for $199 (rci) or $211 (okay up to $260) - OKW would be $220 per night.

on the $160 or $220 per night is only Sun-thurs night - fri/sat will be $400 and $540 for each night.....

I'm sure we would enjoy OKW or any of the onsite villas/suites. Disney's accomodations are top-notch. We could just never do it for 7 times the price (or more) than comparable offsite villas. It would drive me nuts to spend that kind of money for a room. Just personal preference.

 

[goofyforlife]

(This year a friend gave me her week at Orange Lake Resort and I am hooked. The place is huge but you can really enjoy the spaciousness.

The space in the villas at OLCC was nice...

However, some things I didn't like about Orange Lake were:
**** NO lifeguards at the pools.. (You never know when something could happen at the pool. I couldn't trust sending the kids (pre-teens) to the pool by themselves.

**** Lack of customer service (we had problems with the dryer in our unit and management was horrible about it.

Glad we didn't buy there; DVC gives us more room; better service; and safer atmosphere.

 

[sonny]

You just get back onto Hwy 192 and go left (east) to World Drive which is between marker 6 and 7. It is about 10 minutes depending on traffic. While at OL, try some of the nightly activities - the country music nite was fun and the singers were great and I am not even a country music fan.