On site v off site

[Capang]

we have been to wdw twice and both times on site (POR and WL). We love on site. We love not renting a car or paying for parking and being able to take a break midday and get to our resort fairly quickly. We love making FP 60 days out and found FP to work for us. We are looking at taking a trip with some family friends. Discussing it today with them they see no reason to stay on site. They have never been to wdw but have visited Disneyland once (which turned in to a total fiasco because they were certain their son would be allowed on a ride he was obviously not big enough for). They argued that they won't need a FP for anything and will just "wing it." They don't want to make ADRs and think they will be able to get to a timeshare (not sure which one) relatively quickly for afternoon naps. They said they didn't need FP at Disneyland and were able to get to a timeshare very quickly at DL. I tried to explain that DL is smaller than wdw. The argument became DL has everything and more that wdw has and there is no need for onsite.
I understand that many folks don't like FP and maybe don't need it or at least don't need to book 60 days out. We do. DDs fave ride is 7dmt and I refuse to wait in a line for that ride. She also loves A&E. FP is a must. I also enjoy staying on site in the Disney bubble. Those of you that have stayed offsite, where did you stay and how did that work for you? Anyone go and not make an ADR? Those that have stayed at a value resort what did you like about it? What would be a selling point at staying at a value on site? We have never stayed at a value but if we can talk our friends into it we would be willing to cut costs and stay value.

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

we have been to wdw twice and both times on site (POR and WL). We love on site. We love not renting a car or paying for parking and being able to take a break midday and get to our resort fairly quickly. We love making FP 60 days out and found FP to work for us. We are looking at taking a trip with some family friends. Discussing it today with them they see no reason to stay on site. They have never been to wdw but have visited Disneyland once (which turned in to a total fiasco because they were certain their son would be allowed on a ride he was obviously not big enough for). They argued that they won't need a FP for anything and will just "wing it." They don't want to make ADRs and think they will be able to get to a timeshare (not sure which one) relatively quickly for afternoon naps. They said they didn't need FP at Disneyland and were able to get to a timeshare very quickly at DL. I tried to explain that DL is smaller than wdw. The argument became DL has everything and more that wdw has and there is no need for onsite.
I understand that many folks don't like FP and maybe don't need it or at least don't need to book 60 days out. We do. DDs fave ride is 7dmt and I refuse to wait in a line for that ride. She also loves A&E. FP is a must. I also enjoy staying on site in the Disney bubble. Those of you that have stayed offsite, where did you stay and how did that work for you? Anyone go and not make an ADR? Those that have stayed at a value resort what did you like about it? What would be a selling point at staying at a value on site? We have never stayed at a value but if we can talk our friends into it we would be willing to cut costs and stay value.

I've taken many family trips with extended family (inlaws, cousins, etc) so I know how difficult it is to get everyone on the same page. My best advice to you is to have everyone stay where they want to stay. If you guys want to stay on property then you definitely should! If they want to stay off property then go ahead and let them do that. I've learned my lesson that if one group tries to sway the other everything will eventually hit the fan and people are going to be upset. It's not worth the hassle and stress in the long run.
As far as value resorts are concerned I would definitely stay at Pop Century anytime! I love it! If you can talk them into giving it a try I think that's a great compromise! You know the value of Disney transportation, FPs, ADRs, Magic Bands, etc, etc, and I think your newbies will be kissing the ground you walk on by the time the trip is over!

 

[Ceryssa]

I agree, I think it's probably best if you do what you know your group will like and let them do their own thing. Make some dining reservations together and maybe plan to be at the same parks some days, but don't feel the need to do everything together. That way you have some time planned together and the rest of the time you can go your separate ways. Less stressful all around.

 

[DizDaD7]

we have been to wdw twice and both times on site (POR and WL). We love on site. We love not renting a car or paying for parking and being able to take a break midday and get to our resort fairly quickly. We love making FP 60 days out and found FP to work for us. We are looking at taking a trip with some family friends. Discussing it today with them they see no reason to stay on site. They have never been to wdw but have visited Disneyland once (which turned in to a total fiasco because they were certain their son would be allowed on a ride he was obviously not big enough for). They argued that they won't need a FP for anything and will just "wing it." They don't want to make ADRs and think they will be able to get to a timeshare (not sure which one) relatively quickly for afternoon naps. They said they didn't need FP at Disneyland and were able to get to a timeshare very quickly at DL. I tried to explain that DL is smaller than wdw. The argument became DL has everything and more that wdw has and there is no need for onsite.
I understand that many folks don't like FP and maybe don't need it or at least don't need to book 60 days out. We do. DDs fave ride is 7dmt and I refuse to wait in a line for that ride. She also loves A&E. FP is a must. I also enjoy staying on site in the Disney bubble. Those of you that have stayed offsite, where did you stay and how did that work for you? Anyone go and not make an ADR? Those that have stayed at a value resort what did you like about it? What would be a selling point at staying at a value on site? We have never stayed at a value but if we can talk our friends into it we would be willing to cut costs and stay value.

My suggestion to you is, Introduce them to this website, and it'll all change soon enough...


They'll realize how different the 2 are..We didn't know what to expect when we did our DLR trip last Feb. but it is amazing that soo much less planning is need in Cali.

I've stayed offsite in Kissimmee in a 5 BDR house off of Rt. 192 for $775 back in 2006 ( with the whole family.) True it saved us a lot of money, but honestly it's not like any other WDW trip in my eyes. We had plenty of room, yes & our own lil pool/lanai, but swimming by ourselves got boring.1 ADR for the entire trip ( Isn't what I like either ) We saved money and cooked in. If it's a budget you're on then there's plenty to save this way. But explain to them about the time that you'll be spending in the resort/ condo so maybe this wouldn't matter.

When we first started to go to WDW, we stayed values, because we went to the parks from morning to night. We just used it to crash. Then our touring changed, so we upgrade to mods. Huge plusses we found...We started to enjoy the resort time more. We eventually bought into DVC,so accomodation are always on property....Even if we din't buy We couldn't stay offsite again..That's just us though. Remember, Not everyone is totally into Disney ( The Horror ) lol.

Bottom line is, Let them do what they're going to do. It's not worth getting into a fight/argument over it.

 

[Capang]

Thanks everyone for the insight. I will introduce her to the disboards. Then she can decide what to do. I don't think she really gets how much planning is involved. I love planning my wdw trips. I love making the ADRs and staying up late to get the FP times we want. if they decide to ditch the FP and ADRs I just hope they are not disappointed because some lines are so long or they can't get into a restaurant because it is booked.

 

[chartle]

This really isn't an offsite vs on site question but a touring question and would be best in the main Touring forum.

But OP what kind of trip is this supposed to be? Do both families have kids that what to visit the parks together or is it a you will both be at WDW at the same time and may try to meet up? Because if you follow the advice of "you do your thing and we do our thing" that's the best you are going to get.

Oh and to answer your question about ADRs we make at most 1 or 2 very special ones. We are just not TS kind of people. We don't want to spend the time nor the money to go to many TS places.

 

[chartle]

Oh and not sure sending them here is the best plan. they need a overall WDW planning site but since I haven't used one in 20 years have no idea of any good ones.

 

[Capang]

This is a trip we want to do together so our children, who are the same age and best buddies, can be together. They want to spend the majority of our days together. for us the benefits of staying onsite outweigh the offsite option. Our kids are little and still need need that afternoon downtime. I think it is easier to get back and forth to resorts if you stay onsite. this probably is in the wrong forum. I was not sure where it would fit best. Other than cost, I'm not sure of the benefits of staying offsite.

 

[chartle]

This is a trip we want to do together so our children, who are the same age and best buddies, can be together. They want to spend the majority of our days together. for us the benefits of staying onsite outweigh the offsite option. Our kids are little and still need need that afternoon downtime. I think it is easier to get back and forth to resorts if you stay onsite. this probably is in the wrong forum. I was not sure where it would fit best. Other than cost, I'm not sure of the benefits of staying offsite.

OK so you are definitely going to have to get them come around and embrace the dark side of WDW touring. Otherwise you will have to do it their way, even if you are onsite, and then you will both be miserable.

How many kids on their side, maybe they can stay with you and do all the touring with you? Because I see no other way it will happen if they just want to play it by ear.

 

[PlutoFan10]

I agree with the posts above that I would make my on-site resort reservations and let them meet up with you when you get to a park each day. I would tell them that there is no standby (generally) for table service restaurants and discuss having you make some "just in case" ADRs that you can cancel the day before if they really prefer grabbing a burger at counter service. As for FP+, I sure wouldn't want my kid to be disappointed by not getting on their favorite ride or meeting their favorite character. If, after you've explain the wait for some of the "big" rides/events, they still are not interested, I would make FP for the things important for your family. If they want to be in another park or want to wait for another ride, you can meet up with them later. I just wouldn't want to have a frustrating vacation because someone else doesn't care to plan. I know some people enjoy winging it and that's fine as long as you don't have great expectations on what/how much you will see on your trip. Doesn't sound like your own family would be happy winging it the entire trip.

 

[Rosebud123]

All "offsite" hotels are not created equal!
After discovering Wyndham Bonnet Creek, I became an offsite convert. Although most offsite hotels (and all offsite rental homes) don't appeal to me at all, WBC is right next to Caribbean Beach and it's gorgeous with two bedrooms, full kitchen, washer/dryer, balcony (one year we had an incredible fireworks/lake view!), etc. Resort has 5 pools, mini golf, etc. I could go on and on.... You can get a two bedroom for about $100 - $150/night (taxes included) depending on the season.

I can't imagine ever booking a value or moderate resort (and paying more!) over WBC. If the ability to book FP+ at 60 days is really important to you, book a throwaway camp site for the first night of your reservation.

We have a 10 night split stay (5/5) coming up at the end of Aug at the Poly/YC, and I was really torn between that and WBC. We got an amazing deal on room rate ($210 Poly/$190 YC), plus discounted tickets so we figured we'd give it a shot.
I'm going to miss the washer/dryer, full kitchen, and two bedrooms, though!

 

[IceSkatingPrincess]

I always stay at Westgate Town Center when I am offsite. I have been staying there on and off since I was a kid. Huge villas, full kitchens, and tons of space that are a close drive to the park. That said, I try to stay in the Disney Bubble when I can. However, offsite saves me money 100%.

 

[chartle]

Other than cost, I'm not sure of the benefits of staying offsite.

http://allears.net/acc/onoff.htm

Since our first two trips we have always done off site, and yes its mostly cost but its also cost vs what you get. We stay at Buena Vista Suites and we get a room with a hallway, two real rooms, 3 queen beds (one is a sleeper sofa), a microwave and fridge, a real hot american breakfast and its 5 minutes to WDW property for $99 a night. How much would that cost on property, $300 to 400 plus the cost of breakfast?

We drive so we can get around and for some days we can also eat offsite.

 

[katibosch]

I've stayed offsite once, which was fine (just a short two day trip) and onsite once (ASMu for a 10 day trip) and I definitely prefer onsite. The Disney transport, the resort amenities and just being completely in the magic are worth it to me. What is their real reason for wanting to stay offsite? If it's price I haven't found onsite much more, if any more, expensive than off.

 

[chartle]

If it's price I haven't found onsite much more, if any more, expensive than off.

Per my post above, for us, what we get offsite it would cost us more than 3 times if we stayed on site. We are 4 adults and need queen beds. I can't get anything less than around $160 at a certain mod. That's even include the $17 parking fee which is the only cost benefit.

 

[Jennytoon]

Your friends are completely correct.

They will save money by staying off-site. Especially if they have timeshare points that they have paid maintenance fees on and not enough vacation time to use them somewhere else if they don't use them at Disney. Or if they are planning to cook some meals, or take advantage of leaving the property for naps to eat cheaper off-site dinners before returning to the parks.

There are many timeshares that they will be able to get back to quickly for afternoon naps -- depending on your definition of quickly. The question is whether they are expecting to get back within 20 minutes or so, or if they have a different expectation of "quickly" based on their prior experience at Disneyland. It is certainly true that when you stay offsite and therefore have your own car, your travel time is more predictable then when using Disney transportation.

They can certainly go without FP and just 'wing it' -- they'll just need to expect that they may stand in some long lines for headliners. That said, if they're willing to book a couple of days out and be satisfied with the windows they get, they'll still be able to get headliners. Especially in the MK, where people report that aside from A&E and SDMT, same-day availability is pretty good.

Similarly, we have in our last two trips (August 2013, May 2015) found that you can always get an ADR at the last minute at a nice restaurant -- it just might not be at the particular restaurant you were looking for or in the park you are in. Advance ADRs are only required if you want to eat at specific places at specific times. And your friends may also consider that ADRs are not necessary because they were planning on eating a significant number of meals at one of the many lovely restaurants to be found off-site.

I think that as PPs have pointed out, the issue is not that your friends are wrong on the face of their statements, but that they may (or may not) attach a different meaning to the actions "get back to timeshare quickly", "get FP the day of", and "get ADR the day of" than what is actually found at WDW. Maybe you could start a discussion with them and determine what their parameters are. It's entirely possible that they are actually correct in their expectations for the type of vacation that they intend to take, and the differences are in your touring styles and the vacation that you and they are envisioning, not their expectations. If so, it would be good to find that out now.

We have stayed on-site once for a week and not liked it, partly due to poor decisions on our part having to do with touring style. We changed our style that we had used in the past because we were staying on-site, and it worked very poorly for us -- we were on a split stay with an off-site week second, and when we moved off-site I was thrilled to leave the Disney bubble behind for a routine that worked well for us. We've stayed off-site in multiple places and loved our trips. We've also bought DVC and I'm really looking forward to a long on-site stay this coming trip, which I think will be awesome now that we understand that we should stick to work works for us. There is no one right answer to the on-site / off-site question. It's all about how you vacation and what you consider to be value for money.

 

[chartle]

Also OP whats your car situation? With out a car off site would be a disaster.

But as for leaving and coming back, do they realize that at the MK it will take them at least 30 minutes before they get to their car?

 

[Jennytoon]

But as for leaving and coming back, do they realize that at the MK it will take them at least 30 minutes before they get to their car?

This is a commonly cited number. However in 4 off-site trips in August and May, we have never found it to be true unless you are leaving after MSEP or Illuminations or encounter a breakdown on the monorail. If you're just heading out in the middle of the day, we find it is routinely anywhere from 15-20. Since our subsequent travel time is usually in the neighborhood of 10-15 minutes or so, we have routinely found the time from gate to timeshare to be roughly 25 to 30 minutes from the MK, less from other parks.

 

[Kevin355]

Have stayed off-site twice and the rest onsite. Went with friends last year who stayed offsite for a couple of days, then found a room at CBR because they hated the running around offsite to get to WDW. However, it is about preference. I can't see staying offsite as being worthwhile to my wife and I anymore, but if someone wants to go with us and stay offsite, it us up to them.

 

[Tink415]

I brought a friend and her dd to WDW, we stayed at AKL in 1 br villa. She was shocked at how big WDW is and your friends will be too.

Having said that, it sounds like your friends may have a timeshare that they can trade for some place close to WDW? If so I can understand why they'd want to do that.

I prefer being onsite, and own DVC, but still do frequent onsite resort stays and infrequent offsite stays. No matter where we're staying I prefer to rent a car for ease of getting around but don't always get one. There are advantages and disadvantages to each kind of trip. I definitely find myself wanting to take advantage of relaxing more when staying offsite so less park time with those stays now.

ASMo preferred rooms have really cute themes for little kids.