On-site for one night - worth it?

[Mrs Dazzle]

Well, I've come into a little windfall with regards the "holiday budget" and have the potential to stay on-site for one of the nights we are in Orlando. We are currently booked into the Sheraton Safari, Lake Buena Vista for 7 nights (part of our Virgin package), but one of those already has been booked at the HRH for our 2-day Universal trips.

We're only in Orlando for a week, and then off to the beaches and Keys for another week and a half.

Would it be worth it to stay on-site in one of the Disney resorts just for one night? And, if so, which one would you recommend to get the best from??

Also, can you check-in early like HRH and take advantage of parks (already got Disney park passes) ie staying on site - what perks are there?

Thanks for any info.

 

[Hilary]

I'm normally a huge fan of on-site resorts and would recommend it if you plan to 'do' mainly Disney parks. However, if I've read your itinerary correctly, you've already got such a good trip lined up that I don't know whether it would benefit you enough to warrant the hassle of moving for just one night.

In my opinion the single best reason for staying on-site was the Early Entry programme, but since that has now been suspended the remaining 'perks' are things like the incredible theming, free parking, free use of the WDW transport system (bus, monorail, boat) and 24hr wall-to-wall Disney (could be seen as a plus or minus point!). You can certainly check-in early and your luggage will be stored for you if the room isn't ready, but you won't be able to access the park any earlier than non-resort guests. You will be able to start using the transport system, etc.

You'll already have great theming at HRH (and Sheraton I think), so the Disney theming might not give you as much of a 'Wow!' as it might.

For my money the best Disney resort for just one night would be Animal Kingdom Lodge, but only if you were able to spend some time in the resort, not if you planned to be in the parks for most of the day. You could try Port Orleans for the boat ride to Downtown Disney, or the Polynesian for access to MK on the monorail as well as great atmosphere. The All Star resorts are great fun, but you might find them a bit too big and brash after the Sheraton and HRH. Wilderness Lodge is also a fantastic resort and you could get the boat over to MK from there. Also, any of the resorts on the MK lakes (Poly, Contemporary, Grand Floridian, W Lodge, Fort Wilderness) give you a great viewing spot for the Electrical Water Pageant.

So........ that's not much help really is it? LOL! Sorry - I just love them all!

 

[UKDEB]

Having always wanted to stay onsite to experience the magic, we eventually did so in 2000. We had one night at the Beach Club and we all felt that doing just one night was a mistake. We did enjoy our time there, but we simply weren't there long enough to really feel part of it all. We checked in at 3pm on the first day and, although we spent most of the next day at Stormalong Bay, we had to check out by 11am so we didn't really feel like resort guests.

Last year we spent 2 nights at AKL and it made all the difference. Should we ever stay onsite again, we will always opt for 2 nights rather than one.

 

[kazzie]

Hi,

Am I right in thinking of your week in Orlando you are already doing one night in HRH? If so I definitely wouldn't opt for a one night stay at Disney as well.During my holiday we are doing a one night stay at HRH when we go to HHN,but I think two one night stays would be too much messing about

 

[WDWfan uk]

Hi Annie ... if your room isn't ready, they will still check you in and you can have your luggage stowed, so you can go off to the parks but if I was staying just one night at a WDW resort, I'd want to make the most of that resort ( and I'd choose Animal Kingdom Lodge), so this rather depends on how much park time you have and need for the week.
We have stayed at Vero Beach for one night but then we were in transit and made the most of the resort on the second day before we moved off late afternoon.
Looking at your schedule, I don't honestly think I'd do a one-nighter, since you are staying in different places quite a lot during your trip.

 

[BevS97]

I would only really consider it if you were keeping your existing accomodation, and could just pack an overnight bag for the 1 night at WDW. If you have to lug everything there and back, then I think it would be too much hassle.

I agree with most people, I would only do it if you were to choose a resort you want to spend time at, and skip the parks that day, and really enjoy the resort. We went to AKL for 3 nights last year - and imho that was a good length of time to 'try out' a resort. I would probably recommend AKL for a short stay, as the resort itself is so lovely you could easily spend the day there and really make the most of your on-site stay.

bev

 

[Mrs Dazzle]

Originally posted by BevS97
I would only really consider it if you were keeping your existing accomodation, and could just pack an overnight bag for the 1 night at WDW. If you have to lug everything there and back, then I think it would be too much hassle.

Yep - that's what we'll do for our night's stay at HRH, so would have done the same As you can see below, we're already staying in quite a few hotels, so will probably feel like the bag lady by the time we get back, anyway

Thanks so much for your comments, everyone. AKL certainly seems a fave.

The general concensus seems to be no, so may be we'll leave it till next year. Of course, hindsight is a wonderful thing and if I'd known I was going to get £500 back from Virgin (re PE - update on thread), then I probably would've gone for broke and booked a Disney resort in the first place Ah well

Of course, there's always more shops to visit . . . . . .