Pros & cons of on-site vs off-site

[blessedbeingmom]

We are debating whether to stay on-site with free dining or off-site in Windsor Hills. Can you help me think of the pros & cons either way? We will be traveling in November & are a family of 5. We have a 14 yo daughter who really likes her alone time so we would have to get a suite at a value resort, possibly. Not even sure where you have to stay to get free dining. We are new at this Disney thing. We want to watch our budget but yet this may be a once-in-a-lifetime trip so we want to enjoy ourselves & make the most of it. My other two kids are 12.5 yo daughter & 10 yo son. We will have our own car. We plan to stay 7 or 8 nights. Any advice would be appreciated!
Tricia

 

[powellrj]

Check out the Orlando board for off-site information. There's lots of great information over there.

For a family your size, I would stay off-site for the extra room alone. People will say you will miss the magic of on-site, but the rooms are so small for the price, that I feel there is nothing magical about putting 5 people in a small room (even the suites are small compared to off-site). Add in the lower price, extra tv's, extra bathrooms, a full kitchen and laundry and we always will chose off-site.

 

[ancestry]

powellrj is correct that you will get a lot more space for your money off-site.

However, we don't stay off-site especially with teenagers. The on-site transportation is invaluable when you have teens who want to go off and do their own things once in a while.

I like being submersed fully in the Disney experience. It is what I like about Disney.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Free dining throws a definite kink in the plan. We go in Summer, so that's not a factor for us. We like to stay near the 192/I4 intersection and find it easier to get to the parks from there than it would be from the values. The extra space was nice, but the cost savings was our main motivator. Even with peaking fees, we saved more than $900 vs a value, and we had a full kitchen and a private bedroom for DW and I.

 

[chalee94]

We are debating whether to stay on-site with free dining or off-site in Windsor Hills. Can you help me think of the pros & cons either way? We will be traveling in November & are a family of 5.

i love the extra room when staying offsite - i typically stay in 2BR/2BA villas managed by marriott or sheraton (when i'm not onsite with DVC) but i've heard good things about windsor hills.

Not even sure where you have to stay to get free dining.

you'd have to stay onsite at a disney resort AND pay full rack rate for the room. they typically only offer free dining during lower demand periods when they are willing to discount rooms so in order to get the free dining, you'd have to give up the 20-30% (or whatever) discount on a room only stay.

since you have your own car, i think you'd be better off having the option to eat at your rental house/villa or offsite and save more money that way.

the biggest extra expense for offsite stays is probably parking at the parks...but if you are saving more than $17 per day, it's still worth it. remember that if you move your car - say to stay half a day at the MK and go back to your rental for a break and then spend the evening at epcot, you only have to pay one parking fee per day. (you would need a park hopper ticket, though, to go to 2 parks in the same day.)

OTOH, it is nice if you are staying onsite with older kids since you can use the disney transportation (usually buses) if you want to split up. so if one of you wanted to go back to the room early, they could catch a bus and go while the rest of you leave later...

november is a beautiful time to go. the holiday decorations are starting to go up and the temps are often in the 70s. have a great trip!

 

[DisneyDorx]

I know powelljrl doesn't agree, but it's all about the MAGIC!!

MAGIC!! MAGIC!!!

The grounds are awesome, Extra-Magic hours, the Transportation and pools which seem to be open all day and night. And most especially the service...

I've stayed outside; NOT THE SAME REGARDLESS OF SPACE.. We've stayed at beautiful places as well...it's like a buzzkill...just my opinion...and that of the Disney Dorx tribe too..They feel the same way...

"Total Disney Experience"

But if cash is a factor, stay off-site. You should still have a great time.

 

[Sprocket1020]

I would have to say say on site if u can get free dinning get the regular one not the quick service dinning plan and trust me just the meals and sit down restaurants are worth it and magical we never go with out that, also the transportation is way better than driving we did the driving once and will never do it again when u have a full day at the parks of like 12 h and if you go to the mickeys very mery christmas party and stay untill 2 am trut me you are so exhausted you dont want to be driving and be in all the traffic of everyone leaving the parks... Also if you have your own place off site you still have to consider you will have to eat lunch during the day so there is one more expense you will have to pay and even a hot dog at the parks is not cheap plus to be honest de MAGIC of being on property and be able to go to the resort when u want during the day with no less than a 10 min bus ride

 

[Aliceacc]

A quick question-- is free dining normally offered in November?? I know it's typically offered in September, when the kids go back to school; I wasn't aware that November was also a time when it could be expected.

We go over the summer, so free dining isn't an option for us.

But could I run another idea by you? Would you consider staying Deluxe?

Many of the Deluxes (pretty much all except AKL or the Wilderness Lodge) have a daybed, which enables a family of 5 to stay there. (My son, who is a good 6 inches taller than I am, is very comfortable on the daybed. It's a bed, not a cot.) The least expensive is probably a Garden Wing room at the Contemporary. And to be honest, the need for space isn't a big issue for us. As much as we love the amenities of the resort, we don't spend tons of time in the actual room-- we use it to sleep, shower, and change.

And, aside from all the other amenities (for us, Stormalong Bay and the ability to WALK to Epcot are both huge), staying Deluxe would mean that the "free dining" you get is the DDP-- the one that includes one table service meal a day. (I'm pretty sure that the values give you the Quick Serve plan.)

Food at WDW is EXPENSIVE, so I would be all over Free Dining if it were a possibility for my family. (We're both teachers, so it simply won't work for us.) For my family of 5, dining is a big part of the Disney budget. (Then again, I really treasure the one table service meal we do each day. )

Also, take a look at POR-- a moderate--they have rooms with a Murphy Bed that will accomodate your 10 year old son. Not sure which dining plan they would get, but friends LOVED POR a few years ago.

Nope, your daughter wouldn't get room to herself. But she would be getting so many other things that it should at least enter into the discussion.

 

[momto3gr8boys]

A quick question-- is free dining normally offered in November?? I .

Yes, this year's dates are:

August 31 - October 3
October 26 - November 1
November 9 - November 20
December 12 - December 23

OP, my vote is for onsite. I truly feel being in the bubble enhances the overall experience. We utilize DME and on property transportation, and for me that is such a stress reliever. I drive a ton at home, so for me, not having to think when it comes to transportation is huge.

We take advantage of some EMH, but I view that as a bonus over a perk.

But the real reason is the magic. It is not a tangible perk, but it's there. Even when we went to DL this year we stayed onsite (more of a rarity out there) and we were absolutely in a bubble.

Obviously you need to do what works for your family and I'm sure you will have a fantastic time with whichever you choose, but you asked for opinions and mine is onsite!

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[mm1971]

Offsite:

Less $$
More room
usually less busy
food choices expanded with offsite locations

Onsite:

Extra Magic Hours
Free Dining (if offered)
Disney transportation (buses, boats)
Dining at resort
Concierge at the resort for reservations/assistance

There is an emotional element to staying on property that you may not get off. That is being in what is commonly referred to as "the Disney bubble". We like to stay on property, but ours is a family of 4. With 5 it is a little more difficult to do, especially on a budget. I would say that if it is a one time trip and you may not head back, spend the extra $$ and go on property if you can. If it is just too expensive, try Shades of Green or stay off property. Your vacation is what you make of it and being off property certainly has it's benefits as well.

 

[Aliceacc]

Yes, this year's dates are:

August 31 - October 3
October 26 - November 1
November 9 - November 20
December 12 - December 23

Yep, I stand corrected. I just saw that the dates had been released and that they include November.

 

[cruisingtwins]

We prefer offsite. We don't do rope drop to closing so we spend quite a bit of time at the hotel and those disney rooms are tiny. Wealso like having a full kitchen and on suite laundry.

I never felt the magic of overcrowded slow buses.

 

[MandiC]

I don't think I'll ever be able to stay off-site. There is just something so magical about Disney and every Disney employee I interacted with was wonderful. You don't get that everywhere.
One thing not pointed out is that if you are staying at a Disney resort you get free parking at the parks if you chose to not take advantage of Disney transport (or someone could bring the car and others take Disney transport at a later time or vice versa if someone wants to sleep in/go back to the room earlier/ect. I liked that the Magic Bands held all our information, our kids could get into our room if they ran back to it faster than we did. On-site has a lot of 'extras', activities at the resorts and theming.

 

[VbChristy]

The biggest reason for me is the ability to make your dining res 180 + 10 days before the trip. I am staying off site for a trip in October. I had to wake up at 6 am everyday and still couldn't get into 2 restaurants that I wanted- couldn't get in for the whole week.

 

[momto3gr8boys]

The biggest reason for me is the ability to make your dining res 180 + 10 days before the trip. I am staying off site for a trip in October. I had to wake up at 6 am everyday and still couldn't get into 2 restaurants that I wanted- couldn't get in for the whole week.

Yes, I forgot about this in my answer. It will be even more difficult if you do happen to go during free dining - once FD is announced it becomes nearly impossible to get ADRs without the +10 perk (not so much without FD except for the more popular places).

And there's the 60 day FP+ perk as well.

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[chalee94]

Yes, I forgot about this in my answer. It will be even more difficult if you do happen to go during free dining - once FD is announced it becomes nearly impossible to get ADRs without the +10 perk (not so much without FD except for the more popular places).

i wonder if this might change a little since they started using credit card guarantees for all TS reservations...

 

[momto3gr8boys]

It definitely helped tremendously during non-FD times, but not so much during FD. When the majority of your onsite guest are getting their meals for "free", then those tables are taken quickly. The one thing I can see making a difference at this time is that the values get QS and not the full DDP. Although it is so inexpensive to upgrade most people end up doing that.

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