Offsite vs Onsite?

[hsmamato2]

Ok....I've only stayed onsite,my whole life visiting WDW. We LOVE it there! It just feels....special,I don't know why,but it does!
For those of you who've stayed onsite ,and now stay off site at least sometimes....why? Do you miss any 'Disney feel?" Some pictures of local hotels etc look great,but I've found that pictures don't always show the whole deal.....
OR,are there others out there who are against staying offsite ever?
And what is your fave place offsite,and why? or,what is your fave onsite place,but you've also found great offsite places that make you just as happy?

 

[Upatnoon]

I will stay offsite on a family trip for the space (need a 2 bedroom), onsite if it is just me and my wife.

 

[dd50]

I would do either as I like both.

 

[spiceycat]

left out me
love both - stay offsite and onsite - mostly in the same trip.
think there are more like me. Your list is very limiting.

most of time offsite is cheaper and sometimes nicer. Disney is wonderfully love it - am a DVC member. Offsite can be great too.

for larger families - houses offsite are wonderfully. for about the price of a moderate at Disney you get a house.

the timeshares (non-DVC) are really great. they have lots of activities - so you can stay at one and never leave it and have a nice vacation. but hey with WDW so close that is not likely.

there are condo rented by their owners also. some are very close to WDW. your neighbors might be CM.

 

[Elmo9607]

I agree...if it's just two people it would probably be nicer to be able to stay onsite. Especially if it's for a romantic holiday.

If you travel with family, you can rent a vacation home FAR cheaper than the cost of one room, have space to spread out in, and most of them are in private neighborhoods that have clubhouses and nice pools. Some of the houses have their own private pools. We started doing that in 2004.

Of course it would be awesome to be able to stay onsite, but I do not want to be crammed into a hotel room for a week with my parents (and they don't want to be crammed with me!), and getting another room would just be out of the question as it would be WAY too expensive.

 

[o2bnoz]

I would love to stay onsite, but I can't afford the incredibly high rates. I stay in a timeshare and have lots and lots of space and have more money to spend at the parks. In my "perfect world"... I would stay at Boardwalk or the Poly and I'd have deluxe and spacious accommodations )

I seriously envy those who have the resources to visit every year or more AND stay onsite. Lucky, lucky you!

 

[MAKHayes-DisneyDiva]

I chose the middle option - have stayed both, hated off site, but this is not entirely true. I love on site, but off has its perks as well. We stayed at Marriott Grande Vista, and our 1 br villa was huge and beautiful - for way less $ than comparable on site lodging. We also got a great deal at the DtD Hilton. We had a beautiful room, and even had extra magic hours.
Although I enjoy the magical immersion of staying on site, I would be happy with either.

If money was not a consideration, I'd stay in a 1 or 2 BR villa at BC, AKL ,BWV or BLT. Since we are always trying to squeeze the most out of our vacation dollars, this is not an option...but I can dream!

 

[kathy884]

None of the poll choices fit for me. I've stayed onsite seven times, and offsite about 17 times. Offsite is a better value when I am staying for a week or more, paying for it myself, and want a condo with kitchen / washer/dryer etc. I will say though my favorite stays ever were conferences for my husband at the Contemporary where my husbands company was paying for the room -- A deluxe Disney monerail resort, tower, Magic Kingdom view room with balcony -- pretty magical and cool. Loved having the monerail right at the resort. It's not in my budget for me to do that on my own though and I like to take one full week vacation and two to three mini long weekend vacations a year, and budget accordingly. And then there are the times that I've camped. Fort Wilderness is pretty cool / quite a bit more expensive for the campsite than others in the area, but easy to justify as you're spending a little less my camping anyway. Another factor is what parks you are going to do. For a very short stay with just Disney parks, a Disney hotel makes sense. For a very short stay with just SeaWorld, a hotel walking distance to Sea World makes sense, etc.

 

[addictedtothemouse]

I've stayed off site once and absolutely hated it! I just love the feeling of being immersed in the Disney Magic. I would rather stay value at Disney than off site, but I must say if the only way I could go was by staying off site, I would in a heartbeat.

 

[dyna]

Once we tried offsite we LOVED it!!!!! We are now 2 adults traveling no kids offsite allows us more room I put my stuff in 2nd bedroom shower in 2nd bath dh an I can both get ready at same time without falling all over each other. We enjoy a place to call home for a week that is out of the parks we have had enough of disney cattle car buses to last us a life time. Love being able to do laundry right their in our condo anytime we want an it allows us to pack much much lighter. We love our home cooked breakfast every morning.

We usually stay avout a mile from disney property for about the same as a value resort inside disney in May for our next visit we chose a house about 15 mins from disney property as we want to experince living close to disney we thinking about buying a home just south of disney within the next 2 yrs....... Our private home has it's own private pool 3 bedrooms ect for 80.00 per night.

 

[Melissa<3Disney]

I would love to stay onsite, but I can't afford the incredibly high rates. I stay in a timeshare and have lots and lots of space and have more money to spend at the parks. In my "perfect world"... I would stay at Boardwalk or the Poly and I'd have deluxe and spacious accommodations )

I seriously envy those who have the resources to visit every year or more AND stay onsite. Lucky, lucky you!

Haha I feel the same way as you!! We are actually trying to stay onsite in October.. but we only will if Free Dining is offered! The money we would save on food equals to about what we would pay for staying offsite and paying for all the little extras like gas, food, parking, etc! It will be my first time!! And it is also my dream to do Poly or Contemporary!! But if there is no free dining we will hike our booty's to a house offsite and spread out!!

 

[ipodluvr287]

I feel like its not a DISNEY vacation if you stay offsite. Plus, its easier to get around if you stay onsite.

 

[Goofywayne]

Left me out also. Have done both and will continue to do both.

 

[hsmamato2]

sorry if my poll doesn't have enough choices.....but I LOVE that you posted here to say why!!!
I'm REALLY curious about the WHY'S behind people choices.
So far,we've been so lucky,and stayed onsite every time. But,that may not always be the case,and I'm wondering ,if I try to plan a vacation in an offsite place,will my kids be disappointed? they LOVE Disney,LOVELOVELOVE the whole property,so what about the 'feel' of offsite?
anyone found any places that are so nice,and affordable too,that you just don't miss Disney resorts?
I know some folks who don't like the onsite hotels much at all......
I know in many cases,some of the surround area places actually offer more than the Disney properties do.....
So far,it seems a majority stay Offsite to save $$$,but if given the option,would always stay onsite. If that's true then am I right,will we always be disappointed?

 

[spiceycat]

heck no.

offsite can be more fun than Disney. Since you aren't on Disney property and chained to their buses. You can go where and when you want. Kissimmee still has those little parks - that can be great fun. some are silly others are pretty wild - but all are definitely cheaper than disney.

plus it is easier to see Seaworld and Universal Studios. with the Harry potter opening expect some more disers to stay offsite. why pay disney prices when you are not at Disney.

 

[RJD]

Hello. I didn't vote on the poll as my choice wasn't listed. I have done both, definitely prefer onsite but offsite wasn't terrible and I would do it again if I felt I had to money-wise. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Sunspree which is really close to DD entry and it really wasn't bad at all. But definitely prefer onsite!

 

[hsmamato2]

Spiceycat,you own DVC,and still stay offsite sometimes? We've always loved the different DVC options we've tried.....any condo type places that compare to that?

 

[3floridarays]

We love staying at the DTD Hilton. It's right across the street from DTD, so we can walk over there very easily. Also, we dine offsite occasionally to give ourselves more options without paying an arm & leg. The Hilton has a gift shop with lots of Disney merchandise, an ice cream parlor, and character breakfasts. And the rooms are very nice - in fact, we just got back from WL and we actually missed our rooms at the Hilton!

 

[Purseval]

Staying offsite lets you see what an overpriced joke the onsite rooms are. "Magic" at every level comes at a premium.

 

[Brian Noble]

My answer (done both, will still do both) is not there.

But, if for some reason I could no longer get timeshare exchanges into DVC for a fair price, I would be an offsite-all-the-way guy.