Onsite vs Offsite

[Nutsy]

Looking at going to WDW Feb 2009 but would like to know more about where to stay.

At this stage we are looking at staying onsite at Pop Century, but would really like a kitchen or a complimentary breakfast.

To stay offsite, we would need somewhere that has a shuttle to Disney as we are not keen to drive over there (we are Aussies).

Also there is the fact that our two young adult sons will be coming with us and there is no way, come hell or high water that they are going to share a bed, so with that in mind I was looking at staying offsite and hopefully somewhere that has 2 bedrooms with one have 2 single beds or some other arrangement so that they can have a bed each.

Can anyone recommend anywhere affordable, that has a shuttle and breakfast included?

Also, can anyone tell me what hours these shuttle buses run to at night? That will be another factor into working out whether we stay onsite or off.

One more thing. If we do choose to stay offisite, can anyone give us any advice on how best to get there from the Airport?

This is our very first and probalby only WDW trip, so any info no matter how small is much appreciated.

 

[Hugpug]

To stay onside I would recommend the Fort Wilderness Cabins. You not only have sleeping room that would sole your problem. This gives you a full kitchen so you can make some meals to save on cost. You have the advantage of DME service to and from the airport as well. Another option would be a Suite at the All Stars. If offsite I would choose a towncar service to get to and from airport. My choice her is the Holiday Inn Family Suites. There are so many choices it all depends how much you want to spend and what is more important to you. Fort Wilderness has Trail End and the price is very reasonable and the Buffee is excellant. You are a hop skip to Wilderness Lodge next store as well. The cabins sleep 7 people. I travel solo and I have stayed here a few times and loved it.

 

[slickthomas]

Past visits and research has shown that the offsite bus schedules are really bad. If you stay within walking distance on downtown disney, you can walk there and hop on the disney buses.

 

[HeatherC]

Offsite you will get a ton of recommendations for Windsor Hills. They offer condos with full kitchens and are within a few minutes of the parks. If you don't care about being onsite, you will save a TON of money here. You can usually rent for a week for $500-$700 total.

You can check them out on cyberrentals.com and vrbo.com among others.

Some other nice resorts nearby are Oranglake.com, Marriott's Grande Vista, Horizons and Cypress Harbor Resorts along with Sheraton's Vistana Villages and Vistana Resorts.

Hope this helps you!

 

[amw]

We will be staying in a 2-bedroom condo at Bonnet Creek by Wyndham. They are located beside POP, accessible by Disney roads but technically not "on property." They do have shuttles. Here's an old thread:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1402846&highlight=renting+bonnet+creek

Alternatively, you can stay at Doubletree DTD. They are all suites - one bedroom with either 1 king or 2 doubles, and a seperate living room with a pull-out sofa bed. There are lots of specials around, some including free breakfast. I think the last mousesavers newsletter quoted $109/night.

If you really want to stay Disney, and don't want the sons to share beds, you would have to book 2 rooms at a value ... or 1 family suite (more expensive than 2 separate rooms). You could try to book a "trundle" room at PO Riverside but that's not guaranteed - they tend to give those tooms to families of five, and I think the trundle is very small too. Never stayed onsite so can't really help you with those options.

 

[Brian Noble]

To stay offsite, we would need somewhere that has a shuttle to Disney as we are not keen to drive over there (we are Aussies).

Except for DTD hotels (http://www.downtowndisneyhotels.com/) the offiste shuttles are generally horrible. Even the DTD shuttles are "barely tolerable".

Nothing else will be convenient, especially if you want to return to your resort for a mid-day break---this is indispensible to us.

Having done both, I generally stay offsite unless I can get an exchange into a DVC villa. But, I would not stay offsite unless I was willing to rent a car.

So, all that said, if onsite doesn't work for you, you might want to look at the Downtown Disney Doubletree. It is all-suite, rooms have two doubles and a queen sleeper sofa, and some rates include a continental breakfast:

http://www.mousesavers.com/dtguestsuites.html