Offsite = Less Magic?

[StitchesGr8Fan]

DH and I are having our first child this year. BOTH sets of grandparents have hinted that they want to take a big family Disney trip next year.

As an adult I've always stayed on site to get the most magic. As a kid we stayed offsite and I never noticed less magic, but the hotels and restaurants aren't built up to what they are now.

So do you think a trip can still be magical if you stay and eat offsite? Do you lose that special something? We could probably afford on site, but I wonder if it is worth the money for a baby who won't know the difference. I just don't want our parents or my handicapped brother to miss out because we want to save money.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

There's a lot of information about off-site hotels on our Orlando Hotels & Attractions forum. I'm going to move this thread over there, so you get a larger response.

 

[spiceycat]

I just don't want our parents or my handicapped brother to miss out because we want to save money.

are you sure your hc DB is coming?

if so - stay onsite - Disney is designed for the hc - with their bus system. trying to take him and back forth in your van can be a pain.

you can get more opinions (and probably better ones) here
http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=20

to answer your other questions - Disney is great onsite - but it is pretty nice - offsite.

stayed at both - most of the time on the same trip

just depends

some people love offsite and stay there all the time - others won't stay unless it is onsite. It is your vacation - and your choice.

 

[Brian Noble]

There are three things you might want in Disney lodging:

1: To be onsite.
2: To have a reasonable amount of space.
3: To spend a reasonable amount of money.

You can't have all three at the same time (unless your definition of "reasonable" is much different than mine), so you have to decide which one you are most willing to give up.

Personally, I do not find my offsite trips to be all that much different from my onsite ones. Other people would rather just not go if they weren't staying onsite. It's hard to know which sort of person you are until you do them both.

There are some things I like a little more about the onsite trips---for example, that I can have a second margarita at La Cava and Disney will drive me home. The offsite places, in contrast, tend to be a lot nicer for the money.

Finally, you don't need to eat offsite if you stay offsite. In fact, you often probably won't. We typically have breakfast in our condo (either onsite in a DVC unit, or offsite somewhere). We head to the parks early, and stay through lunch and a little later. We come back for a break---easy to do offsite or on---and then head out for dinner and an evening out. That's often back at a Disney location.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

DH and I are having our first child this year. BOTH sets of grandparents have hinted that they want to take a big family Disney trip next year.

As an adult I've always stayed on site to get the most magic. As a kid we stayed offsite and I never noticed less magic, but the hotels and restaurants aren't built up to what they are now.

So do you think a trip can still be magical if you stay and eat offsite? Do you lose that special something? We could probably afford on site, but I wonder if it is worth the money for a baby who won't know the difference. I just don't want our parents or my handicapped brother to miss out because we want to save money.

I have begun to feel a LOT less magical on site. When I look at the room quailty, features etc it's not magical to realize "I AM BEING RIPPED OFF"
Once you get past the theme you may start to realize these rooms are not that nice for the price I paid. Some people seem to be able to accept the "it's Disney, pay more and receive less" model and feel "magic" but... I feel disillusionment LOL!

 

[quagmire0]

This is coming from someone who has never stayed onsite, but two things:

1. If you've stayed onsite previously, then you've experienced that and really won't be missing anything. In fact, your memories will more than likely be better than your actual experience this time around.

2. To me, aside from saving money, possibly eating healthier, and having A LOT more room to stretch in a condo/townhome/rental home, escaping the madness of Disney and returning to a quiet oasis is a nice thing.

Now, if you have considerations in regards to someone with a handicap, then that can weigh heavily on your decision. But, as much as Disney may be built for that, you could also say that a rental home might offer more comfort for someone in that situation as well.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

I have begun to feel a LOT less magical on site. When I look at the room quailty, features etc it's not magical to realize "I AM BEING RIPPED OFF"
Once you get past the theme you may start to realize these rooms are not that nice for the price I paid. Some people seem to be able to accept the "it's Disney, pay more and receive less" model and feel "magic" but... I feel disillusionment LOL!

I will wholeheartedly agree .

For our August trip, we are getting a two bedroom, two bathroom villa with a screened patio, full kitchen and three flat screen TV's at a resort that offers 7 pools, multiple hot tubs, tennis, volleyball, basketball, and mini golf for the same price as a Disney value.

In my opinion, that's "magic".

 

[ForMyBoys]

We will be staying off-site this time in April. But we have never stayed on-site so take my advice for what its worth. I did, however, visit my friends at the poly last time, we ate there at the CS place and swam in the pool with them. While the pool was nice their room was so small and there were so many people. Waiting in line to get food made me crazy. I did really like the tram though. Anyway, after seeing the comparison I felt like I had really made a good decision to stay offsite. Our offsite rented house was actually closer to the parks then some of the disney hotels. 3 miles. So if you stay offsite make sure you stay close... that is key.

I don't think my kids even noticed being offsite, honestly what they loved most was the pool at our rental house..... in my opinion that was magical. We also rented a car. And it was magical not to have to wait for transport. We already wait in line all day for rides, knowing you can jump in your own car and get where you want when you want to get there is priceless. Even if I stayed on-site I'd rent a car.

But we are also a family that doesn't spend every day at the parks, more like every other day. That way we can get some time to relax, dip in the pool, maybe watch a movie together or explore DTD

This trip I am doing some additional things to make it more magical for my kids. Easy things, like themed invitations and letters from disney characters. I booked a character breakfast at the poly on one of the days off and we are going to ride the monorails. So you can still experience much of the disney magic without staying in their undersized/overpiced hotels.

 

[loveysbydesign]

I have begun to feel a LOT less magical on site. When I look at the room quailty, features etc it's not magical to realize "I AM BEING RIPPED OFF"
Once you get past the theme you may start to realize these rooms are not that nice for the price I paid. Some people seem to be able to accept the "it's Disney, pay more and receive less" model and feel "magic" but... I feel disillusionment LOL!

I will wholeheartedly agree .

For our August trip, we are getting a two bedroom, two bathroom villa with a screened patio, full kitchen and three flat screen TV's at a resort that offers 7 pools, multiple hot tubs, tennis, volleyball, basketball, and mini golf for the same price as a Disney value.

In my opinion, that's "magic".

ITA with these posters!!!!!!!!!! We LOVE off-site!

 

[Abharmagic]

Don't drink the on-site Kool-Aid-- offsite can be JUST as magical, way less expensive, and you can find much nicer accommodations than WDW resorts. Enjoy and have fun!!!

 

[Keacc]

I love missing the the Disney Magic!
1 The magic of how they put the Disney name on a Days Inn room and call it a value resort, but it costs more than a cheap off site room.
2 The magic of WDW transportation, when after waiting an eternity for a bus, how they can pack 50 people into a bus for 30.
3 The magic of Disney making your money disappear fast for run of the mill food. Paying $8 for a burger that is equivalent to McDonalds.
I'll pass on the magic. We either rent a house or condo offsite and have more fun.

 

[Metro West]

The so called "magic" is what you make it...staying on site or off.

 

[chicagoshannon]

With kids it's so much nicer to stay in a condo with bedrooms. It's nice to be able to put the kids to bed in their own room and still be able to watch tv ect. In the living room.

 

[jeff968]

I saw a Disney commercial just today pointing out what guests look for on their trips (parks, night time, the pool). If relaxing and enjoying the pool is your definition of magic then you'll find it many places in orlando. That is the magic we come down for now, that Beautiful Florida sun, and it works just as well at the Marriott as it does in Disney.

 

[MOpGrad2013]

...OP for asking the question.

...for all the answers.

...for reassuring me that we made the best decision for our large family.

Residence Inn LBV is giving us $25 DisDollars for each of our nights.

Good Luck OP on your decision.

 

[7165red]

We stayed on and off site but once we rented a villa there was no going back to a one room on site. Most villas will have one or two bedroom done in Disney décor.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

Stitch, I'm in a very similar situation to you. Honeymooned in WDW...love WDW...and have a baby on the way. Congrats on your pregnancy!

I have always dreamed about taking my future baby to WDW. I always said that I would pay the money to stay on-site with a child at a hotel on the Monorail loop for easy access to the MK.

I stayed at the WL for two nights on my honeymoon and the rest off-site. The WL was wonderful, but gosh, the room was small and the price was steep! I loved it, but I would not have been thrilled to pay all that money for an entire week there.

Anyways, I always said I would rent DVC points to stay at Bay Lake Towers. Walking my little one over to the MK in the stroller, coming back for naps, etc sounded like a dream.

Then I stayed at Wyndham Bonnet Creek last Sept. 3 bedroom unit for me and DH, Mom and Sister, and MIL. I absolutely loved it. The room was huge, we were close to the parks (with option to take a shuttle), loved the full kitchen and loved all the pools.

I did a price comparison between the two. A studio at BLT would be over $2000 for the week, assuming $10-11 per point. A 1 bedroom at Wyndham Bonnet Creek can be had for far under $1000--I'm seeing listings on eBay for 650-800 for a week.

As much as I'd love to stay at the Contemporary, I just could not justify paying more than double the cost. It's absolutely within our means to pay for the points to do DVC...I just couldn't justify it when I liked WBC so much.

With the group you are traveling with, you could book a 3-4 bedroom for around 1200 a week and all be very comfortable.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

Also, a villa or condo and Windsor Hills would likely be a very good fit for your family.

 

[ryalluvdiz]

We are renting a large house for our 14 day trip in june. There are 6 adults and 6 kids so we wanted some space and meals outside of the World. We have a 6 bedroom house with a pool for $2400 for 14 days. I cant imagine staying for that long in a tiny hotel room!

 

[Pembo]

Have stayed both onsite and offsite. It is definitely a different vacation when we were offiste. We saved a lot of money, we ate better, we relaxed more, and we enjoyed driving to the parks everyday in our own car.

This year we have to go at spring break. We opted to stay onsite because we'll utilize the morning extra magic hours.

My opinion is that offsite does not = less magic, just different magic.