onsite squeeze or off site roomy?

[miceandmen]

ok we have 9 going aug. 16-20. so far I have us booked 2 rooms military rate at the Swan. 4 adults 5 teens. pro mom and dad have some peace knowing teens can get back safely to room.
con space of room and price. any thoughts with people who have wrestled woith this? thanks

 

[Mrs.A]

Go with the Swan, I think you will be happier staying on site than off. The Swan is right by the boardwalk with lots of things to do in the evening especially for the teens. Also with in walking distance to MGM and Epcot.

Staying off site you have to worry about the transporation to the parks, if driving your own car great. But you still have to pay to park if staying off site. If you want to rest or swim in the afternoon you can't just walk back to your resort.

Have a wonderful trip whatever you decide. We will be there next week. Oh and we are staying at the Swan. I hear the heavenly beds are wonderful.

 

[disneysteve]

I think you have to decide what your preference is. Personally, we prefer not to be in one room even with our one child. We don't sleep with her at home and don't want to do it on vacation either. There are plenty of nice suite hotels in the area as well as beautiful condos and pool homes available for rent. Check out http://www.vrbo.com for some ideas. Also, in a condo or house, you would have a full kitchen, washer and dryer, multiple TVs along with loads more space.

The point about the teens being able to get around on their own is a good one, though. That might be the main reason to stick with the onsite accomodations. The odds are slim that all 9 people are going to want to do the same thing all the time. Being onsite, you can split up more easily. If the teens want to go back and swim in the afternoon, they can hop on a bus (or walk from EPCOT or bus from MGM/EPCOT).

Steve

 

[dg39]

Stay on site so you don't have to worry. Nothing will ruin anything more than worrying. Disney is fairly safe,(I say fairly, because things happen everywhere) but just knowing that your teens are on property and traveling with on-site transportation will let you have more peace of mind & let you enjoy yourself more.

 

[antmaril]

I would go with the Swan so your teens can come and go and you don't have to worry.

We were just at Universal for three nights staying at the Royal Pacific. We had four teens with us and it was great that they could come and go to the parks. It would be the same situation at the Swan. They would be able to walk to Epcot, the Boardwalk and even MGM (or take the boat).

Hope this is helpful.

 

[Lisa P.]

It depends on the adults' vacation style as well as the teens' -AND- whether you will have a couple of cars or not. Chances are, the teens will want to sleep in a little longer, be out in the evenings. How would that affect the adults' plans, if they needed to meet up for transportation?

Once they are on WDW property, teens are not very likely to need to return to the hotel any more often than adults. They can independently get around WDW easily enough. Assuming they are responsible young people, you wouldn't have very different concerns than you would if staying onsite.

Either way, two-way radios or cell phones would be useful. We visit with teens and enjoy offsite visits without any trouble at all. Depends on the people in the group and how well they do with splitting up and reuniting.

Also, with hungry teens, having a kitchen to stock up for big, cheap breakfasts, snacks, soft drinks and making late-night, frozen pizzas and ice cream sundaes can save $$$. Stopping at less pricy offsite buffet meals can be a LOT cheaper than feeding 4 adults and 5 teens at Disney restaurant prices!

I believe the Swan charges a "resort fee" of $10/room/night at check-out, in addition to the nightly rate. Plus, if you use the valey parking, it's $10/night. Keep these costs in mind when planning your budget, as they can add up.

If you won't have cars, onsite is really preferable. HTH.

 

[horseshowmom]

Have you considered renting points and staying at one of the DVC properties? That might provide you with the best of both worlds. You could have the kitchen, and the teens would have Disney transportation to come and go. The Beach Club Villas (I think that's the right name) would be my choice, because I believe they're at the Boardwalk which would be very convenient (and I've heard the pool there is incredible).

 

[miceandmen]

sb,

thanks for the input, but when i go to the dvc board, unless i am not reading it correctly. It looks very expensive to buy points. Off site we can get a 3 bedroom for about $980.00 for 4 nights. From dvc it looks like it would cost us $2000.00 - $3000.00 ????????? Am I doing something wrong? Because I would LOVE this optoin!
Thanks

 

[disneysteve]

Originally posted by miceandmen
Off site we can get a 3 bedroom for about $980.00 for 4 nights. From dvc it looks like it would cost us $2000.00 - $3000.00

I don't know about DVC, but you should be able to get a 3-bedroom condo offsite for way less than $980. Windsor Palms has 3-br listed from $75/nite. There is usually a cleaning fee of about $60 for short stays, but that still comes to only $355.

You can look at the offsite options at http://www.vrbo.com

Steve