Priced out :(

[pocomom]

Thanks to all suggesting the points rental. Didn't think of it , and I'll definitely look into it!

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

Yes. I know that is kind of the typical vacation for us, or we stay in our RV at Fort Wilderness which just may be the best way to get what everyone wants ( on-site, bedroom, beds for everyone ) for an affordable price. This was just more about wanting to try that specific resort for years now, and probably missing our window of opportunity. I know for my animal loving kids it would be especially magical

My parents had an RV when I was younger. We went pretty much every year, sometimes twice a year, and stayed at Fort Wilderness. It was such a great experience and I never felt like I was missing out by staying there rather than one of the other resorts. Best RV resort in the world for sure.

 

[Marionnette]

REnt DVC points for 10 per point...

You're not going to see $10 per point unless they are distressed points, meaning that the owner is in a "use it soon or lose it" situation.

Most owners rent their points for closer to $13-$15 per point, depending on where they own and how far in advance you're hoping to book. I've even seen some go for as much as $18 per point.

 

[freediverdude]

Are you pricing Christmas week or something? I'm trying to figure out how you're coming up with an 11k figure, that sounds awfully high. But it's true, most times of the year what you're proposing would be $6-7k, which is still out of reach of many people. I would try for the 1 bedroom villa with rental points.

 

[georgina]

Yes. I know that is kind of the typical vacation for us, or we stay in our RV at Fort Wilderness which just may be the best way to get what everyone wants ( on-site, bedroom, beds for everyone ) for an affordable price. This was just more about wanting to try that specific resort for years now, and probably missing our window of opportunity. I know for my animal loving kids it would be especially magical

We have camped at Ft Wilderness too. What about a split stay? I have always wanted to stay at the Grand Floridian but there is no way I could justify the price to myself. Sometime I am going to spend just 2 nights there and never leave the resort!

 

[robinb]

I'll chime in with the rest. A 1-BR at AKV will set you back no more than 272 points (assuming you're not going over spring break, 3/29-4/11). That would be about $3800 (there is no tax) through David's rental for 7 nights. At AKV you'll get a king sized bed for you and a pull out couch and a foldout chair for your kids, a full kitchen, a washer and dryer and 2 bathrooms.

If you really want to save money, rent a condo. I once rented a 2BR a condo in Windsor Hills a few years ago over Spring Break for $420 including all taxes and fees. Condos nearby are usually in the $80-$150 per night range and there seems to be little difference in price between a 2BR and 3BR so you could get a 3BR and no one has to sleep on the couch for less than half the price of AKV. I used VRBO to find places.

 

[Vernie822]

Definitely look into rental companies. We paid about what a moderate costs to stay at AKV & the Poly in November. Yes, it is expensive to "pay cash" for DVC rooms, but you can definitely get a discounted rate by booking through a rental company or even an individual DVC owner.

If those options are still too expensive, definitely consider a condo off-site. Maybe since your kids are a little older they'd like some non-Disney time!? Not sure. You could definitely save some $$ and cook breakfast and maybe a couple dinners at your condo.

 

[pocomom]

Are you pricing Christmas week or something? I'm trying to figure out how you're coming up with an 11k figure, that sounds awfully high. But it's true, most times of the year what you're proposing would be $6-7k, which is still out of reach of many people. I would try for the 1 bedroom villa with rental points.

I did 2 rooms and tickets for 4 adults and 1 child - I was picking random dates in Spring so it is possible I hit a peak week. 2 Rooms with Sav. view alone were over $1000 a night. It's possible there is a mistake in there somewhere, as their system was acting goofy, but at best it was still unaffordable.
just checked - it's saying 1602.85 for 5 day tickets and $4,921.93 per room. I did March 6- 13th so it was actually 7 nights. It was under their "spring vacation offer" Not sure if that is peak, and we are really flexible on dates but it would pretty much have to be half as much to be worth it to me.

 

[robinb]

I did 2 rooms and tickets for 4 adults and 1 child - I was picking random dates in Spring so it is possible I hit a peak week. 2 Rooms with Sav. view alone were over $1000 a night. It's possible there is a mistake in there somewhere, as their system was acting goofy, but at best it was still unaffordable.

I could believe that. A Savannah View costs $579/$641 in regular season and $650/$706 in peak season. Easter is $712! Even with a 30% discount that would be very expensive.

 

[pocomom]

We have camped at Ft Wilderness too. What about a split stay? I have always wanted to stay at the Grand Floridian but there is no way I could justify the price to myself. Sometime I am going to spend just 2 nights there and never leave the resort!

Actually, that might be a really nice idea - We typically go over to the AKL or one of the others on one of our no park days too so I could probably make it a surprise for the kids, they might think we are just checking it out like usual.... I'll definitely have to think on that one too!

 

[FirstDown]

I even think renting points is expensive but that's me. We've only ever stayed offsite because we insist on multiple rooms within the hotel room.

WBC next year Easter week for $100 a night. Just an idea.

 

[tcherjen]

I understand! We have been staying at AOA in a suite for our week long vacations. DH and I get the room, teens get the sofa bed and youngest got the table bed. Everyone was happy!!! I liked having two bathrooms. AKL is beautiful, but I too couldn't spend that much money.

 

[katyjeka]

I'm sorry but if I'm paying that much a night I better be standing on my balcony looking at the ocean and listening to the waves.... Or I would take the 11000 and put it towards an African trip. I love disney as much as the next person but admit that our trip to Oahu this past November was beautiful and opened our eyes to how expensive WDW really is....

 

[HeatherC]

Look into Bonnet Creek. Practically onsite just not Disney owned. We rent a three bedroom villa for about $125 a night..including all taxes!

 

[freediverdude]

Hmm, apparently the rack rate is real high during that time for that resort, but there is a spring deal out there, if you click the arrow to the right if it's not showing, that puts your dates at $503 per night, per room, for $3924 per room including tax, and then I would lop off a day to 6 nights to make it more like $3400 per room.

If you were willing to wait til another time of year like June, it looks like the rack rate in June is $515 instead of the $592, and then once you were able to get the public discount for that time it would be lower $400s per night.

 

[agavegirl1]

All of the PP have been spot on for your time frame. I will suggest something a little different. Once your family reaches "5"...your options are more limited. For me, I spaced out the trips to a more affordable level. Instead of an annual trip on site, maybe do every couple of years on site and do other vacations in the interim. Just a thought. It makes the WDW trips more precious and the kids appreciated them more.

 

[Marionnette]

I did 2 rooms and tickets for 4 adults and 1 child - I was picking random dates in Spring so it is possible I hit a peak week. 2 Rooms with Sav. view alone were over $1000 a night. It's possible there is a mistake in there somewhere, as their system was acting goofy, but at best it was still unaffordable.
just checked - it's saying 1602.85 for 5 day tickets and $4,921.93 per room. I did March 6- 13th so it was actually 7 nights. It was under their "spring vacation offer" Not sure if that is peak, and we are really flexible on dates but it would pretty much have to be half as much to be worth it to me.

So those were rack rates and no package deal? Yep, any deluxe is going to be expensive if that's what you're looking at!

There's already a summer meal deal out (one QS meal per person, per night), which like a very good deal for larger families. You would pay the rack rate for your room, but the *free* food would be worth it for a family the size of yours.

There will most likely be room-only discounts for the summer, too. Deluxe resorts always have a higher %-off than the Values and Moderates.

 

[Marionnette]

Something else to look into would be Orbitz or expedia .co.uk for discounts on Disney resorts. Orbitz often has Disney rooms with whatever discount Disney is offering PLUS you can apply an Orbitz discount code to the reservation to save even more! Expedia .co.uk will have rates that the US website doesn't. If you have a CC that is free of foreign transaction fees, the prices can be awesome!

Another option would be to look for a TA that deals in conventions at Disney. They often have blocks of rooms at tremendous discounts and will sell them to the general public. Or if you belong to a professional organization, check to see if they have a meeting in Disney. We stayed at the GF for $219/night last fall when we went to a meeting for people in our line of business. I would never get to stay at the GF otherwise!

 

[Gumbo4x4]

That's our dream room as well. But, one night in that room is more than we spent on a 2-bedroom cabin for EIGHT nights last year.

Someday, the "plan" is to go down for a week or so, mostly offsite, but spend one or two nights in the "dream room".

 

[Mickeyluver37]

I found the DIS before our first trip in 2002. DH was military so we paid what seems like now, next to nothing for our room and tickets! Then we took advantage of another military promotion the following year, and several years of free dining in August. At this point, we are 3 years out from our last trip, probably making 4 times the income we made back in those days, and can't afford to go this year either. (Having 2 more kids didn't help either- can't even do 1 deluxe room with a family of 6.)

We did rent a Windsor Hills townhouse one year, and the kids and DH loved it. I personally prefer the magic of staying onsite to the space. But it sure was significantly cheaper! We needed to check out on a Tuesday instead of a Saturday and I just paid for 2 weeks because it was still cheaper than moving to a hotel for 3 extra nights.