Questions about planning to play and dine off-site

[bangzoom6877]

For those of you who do not do the DDP or the DDE (if you have an AP), and eat at off-site restaurants, where do you go? How far are some good but reasonably-priced restaurants off-site? By reasonably priced, I am talking about $40-50 for a dinner for 2 adults and 2 small children. Or even places like Cici's pizza, Shoney's, etc.

Also, if you go off-site for other things, how long a drive is it to the following:

-Universal Studios
-Islands of Adventure
-Sea World

Are there other places in the Orlando area you go to? Just trying to figure out how we would vacation as our boys get older if we buy DVC (which it looks like we will in about 8 months). I know Universal and Islands of Adventure are great for older kids. Other things? Other ways to save on dining out? (I already know about the kitchen in the one-bedroom but we prefer to dine out on vacation!!).

 

[eva]

Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, and Sea World are really not that far. The drive takes about 20 to 30 minutes depending on traffic. Don't worry about finding affordable places to eat offsite. They are all over. Go to Google and do a search on restaurants in Kissimmee or Lake Buena Vista and you'll find all kinds.

 

[bangzoom6877]

Thank you Eva!

Does anyone feel bothered going off-site to eat dinner? I am wondering about this but I suppose we will learn more the more we go. Right now the DDP works well for us because the kids are little and it is so easy to stay on-site, especially if we are staying at BWV since there are so many nearby restaurants. Just easier than putting the kids into the car.

When we went last month and stayed at Pop Century, we did not leave property the entire length of our 5-night stay. But, we did do a park a day so it was tiring. With a 10-night stay and going to the parks 5 or 6 days (or 7 or 8 when they are older and we go to Universal and Sea World), eating off-site probably would not be as much of a nuissance, especially putting older kids into the car vs. little kids. We also had to drive to all the restaurants anyway on this last trip since we were at Pop and they only offer a food court. So even though we had some meals at resorts, we had to still get there. I suppose no different than driving a few miles off-site.

 

[CraftyMouse]

Thank you Eva!

Does anyone feel bothered going off-site to eat dinner?

We do. I find that the hassle and time spent getting offsite is not worth the cost savings. In addition, we can go to places like The Olive Garden, Fridays, Applebees, etc. at home so they hold no appeal for us on vacatoin. We do go to Chick-Fil-A at least once though, and occasionally make a stop at Sonic. We don't have either of those where we live. We usually pair those up with a trip off-site for groceries or to go to the Disney outlet. Instead of going off-site we go to places like ESPN, Beaches & Cream, the food courts at Pop or the All-Stars, the Pepper Market and other mid-priced places right on property. We also like some of the counter-service places in EPCOT (Tangerine Cafe is our favorite). We purchase the DDE card and get 20% off where we can.

As for the kitchen, we use it more and more as our kids are getting older. When we first bought DVC we only used it for quick breakfasts and the occasional snack. Now we have a big spaghetti dinner one night (it's become tradition) and do more quick meals right in the villa.

As for your driving quesiton, a lot depends on traffic and what WDW resort you're at. From OKW it takes us about 15-20 minutes to get to Sea World and about 30 minutes to get to Universal/IOA (they are located in the same place).

 

[jekjones1558]

We do dine at Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Macaroni Grill, Landry's, Chevy's, Bennigan's. etc. when at WDW. There are LOTS of these chains if you go right or left or straight when exiting WDW at Crossroads Center. Unlike most families, we rarely eat out at home, so for us it is a treat. Sometimes we do a late lunch (usually cheaper and less crowded) and then go to the parks for the evening and just have ice cream or such in the evening. People often give us gift cards for these places knowing that we can use them when we go to WDW. We sometimes just get deli stuff at Publix if we feel like just hanging out at our resort. We have our WDW favorites (I love the salads and soups at Boma, for instance) but I'm sure that there are not many DVCers who dine like us. That's our pattern.

 

[eva]

Thank you Eva!

Does anyone feel bothered going off-site to eat dinner? I am wondering about this but I suppose we will learn more the more we go. Right now the DDP works well for us because the kids are little and it is so easy to stay on-site, especially if we are staying at BWV since there are so many nearby restaurants. Just easier than putting the kids into the car.

When we went last month and stayed at Pop Century, we did not leave property the entire length of our 5-night stay. But, we did do a park a day so it was tiring. With a 10-night stay and going to the parks 5 or 6 days (or 7 or 8 when they are older and we go to Universal and Sea World), eating off-site probably would not be as much of a nuissance, especially putting older kids into the car vs. little kids. We also had to drive to all the restaurants anyway on this last trip since we were at Pop and they only offer a food court. So even though we had some meals at resorts, we had to still get there. I suppose no different than driving a few miles off-site.

When our daughters were teenagers and rollercoaster fiends, we used to hit US and IoA most years. Those days we usually would either eat at City Walk (love Hard Rock Cafe and Margaritaville) or hit Bahama Breeze on the way back to WDW. We don't have any of those restaurants in our area. But for the last few years we have not been venturing out much. I'm sure in a few years when the grandkids get a bit older we will hit those parks again.

 

[hakepb]

Thank you Eva!

Does anyone feel bothered going off-site to eat dinner?

Why go off site if you can get a Giordano's delivery!

 

[eliza61]

Thank you Eva!

Does anyone feel bothered going off-site to eat dinner? I am wondering about this but I suppose we will learn more the more we go. Right now the DDP works well for us because the kids are little and it is so easy to stay on-site, especially if we are staying at BWV since there are so many nearby restaurants. Just easier than putting the kids into the car.

.

Not really. The one thing we like about eating off site is the ease of it (at least for us). We don't have to worry about ADR's especially since the inception of the DDP makes it extremely hard to be spontaneous as far as eating goes. If we get hungry at 2:00 pm and your adr is not until 6:00 you're sort of stuck.

Also I think the quality of Disney's restuarants have gone down alot since the ddp (just my opinion folks, absolutely no facts to back it up) Every menu seems to be very homogenized especially in the parks.

 

[bangzoom6877]

I am wondering about how we will feel about the hassle of leaving property just for a dinner. We will see, we'll play it by ear. I'm sure that since our July 2010 trip will only be our second as a family, we have A LOT to learn but before we know it we will have our Disney trips down to a science. Not to brag, but we did pretty well this past trip considering I had not been to WDW for 14 years, and that was when I was about to turn 17, so an entirely different perspective than being a 31-year-old mom of 2 little ones!

I did use Tour Guide Mike and listened to his advice (except we did take advantage of EMH mornings twice, but I used his article on that as well and it worked out great!). The longest line was 30 minutes in the middle of July, and that was by choice (and only one time). DH went to get himself a FP for Everest at AK while I took the kids into DinoLand USA. He texted me to ask if I mind if he would wait 30 min for the standby and I was fine with it since the kids and I were able to walk right onto Triceratops spin, and play games and look in some shops in DinoLand. Then DH met me there and we each rode Dinosaur! It really was a great plan overall though for all of the theme parks! We walked right on to most rides, or waited no longer than 5 minutes. The other longer wait was when DH went on Soarin'. I went there at park opening, grabbed a FP for DH, rode the ride myself, and then we went to The Seas pavilion for the Nemo ride and Turtle Talk. By the time we were out it was FP return time for Soarin' but DH still had to wait 20 min.!

Anyway I am going off on a tangent as I tend to do all the time!! As I said, we'll see how our trips differ over the years. It will be interesting and fun to see how the boys' tastes change over the years, in both having fun and eating!! Who knows...they may be bored going to TS places all the time, or may just want to go to ESPN Club all the time! I have a feeling we will be spending lots of time at that place!

 

[bangzoom6877]

Not really. The one thing we like about eating off site is the ease of it (at least for us). We don't have to worry about ADR's especially since the inception of the DDP makes it extremely hard to be spontaneous as far as eating goes. If we get hungry at 2:00 pm and your adr is not until 6:00 you're sort of stuck.

Also I think the quality of Disney's restuarants have gone down alot since the ddp (just my opinion folks, absolutely no facts to back it up) Every menu seems to be very homogenized especially in the parks.

I know it is easier not to have to worry about ADRs, but how crowded do the restaurants get off-site? I would assume they would be worse on weekends, although people go to Disney all days of the week especially throughout the summer! So maybe make ADRs for the one weekend we would be there, and be spontaneous on the weekdays?

ESPN Club I know does not take ADRs, but how crowded does it get for an early dinner at around 5:30? And I believe the Big River Brewery restaurant does not take ADRs either. How crowded does this one get? They are both very reasonably priced, and places I am sure our family would enjoy.

 

[CraftyMouse]

I know it is easier not to have to worry about ADRs, but how crowded do the restaurants get off-site?

This is one of the major hassles of going off-site for us. Each time we have done it there has been a very long wait for a table. We generally eat between 6 & 7 as, it seems, does the rest of the locals/vacationers. By the time we get in the car, drive to the off-site location, wait for a table, eat and make our way back to WDW it's taken hours. It's so much easier to get something on property...even if it's in our own kitchen!

Another option is for you to call in a "To Go" order to a restaurant and have one adult pick it up. While they are doing it the other adult can take the kids to the pool/arcade/etc. Then, when the food arrives you can have a nice, not-prepared-by-you meal in the villa or poolside.

 

[bangzoom6877]

This is one of the major hassles of going off-site for us. Each time we have done it there has been a very long wait for a table. We generally eat between 6 & 7 as, it seems, does the rest of the locals/vacationers. By the time we get in the car, drive to the off-site location, wait for a table, eat and make our way back to WDW it's taken hours. It's so much easier to get something on property...even if it's in our own kitchen!

Another option is for you to call in a "To Go" order to a restaurant and have one adult pick it up. While they are doing it the other adult can take the kids to the pool/arcade/etc. Then, when the food arrives you can have a nice, not-prepared-by-you meal in the villa or poolside.

This is also a great idea! It's funny you mentioned taking food out because when we drove down last month, we went from NYC all the way to NC the first day, and we arrived around 5PM. We had planned either for DH to go get us some dinner and bring it back, or to call something in for delivery. There was a BBQ place that got great reviews online, so we decided to try it. I called before we left for our trip to find out if they do take-out and they said yes. So, I printed the menu from online, and DH picked us up the food! In the meantime the kids were able to play and run around (NOT literally!) in the room with me. Now, we only had one desk with 2 chairs, so it was not the most comfortable situation but we made it work. It would be even better in a one-bedroom villa with all that room!!

I did figure that with going to a restaurant, parking, waiting, etc. it would take so long for dinner. As you can see from what I did in NC, I am a huge planner! I do not mind making my dining reservations 6 months in advance. When that date hit this past January it only made me more excited because the trip felt that much closer! I liked spending lots of time planning our itinerary and food is important to us on vacation, so I loved researching the different restaurants at Disney. Also, as someone else mentioned, certain other things off-site I could get here. Then again, there are others I cannot get here that are only down south or at least VERY far away from Brooklyn, NY! So it really is a tough decision.

DH will likely want to do the DDP again, being able to predict more what we will spend on a given vacation. I even joked around with him and said there are not too many trips we could take advantage of the DDP because before we know it the boys will be over 9 and full adult price of $40 a day in today's money. And so he chuckled and said, "You think BOYS over 10 can't eat more than $40 worth of food in a day?!"

 

[hakepb]

"You think BOYS over 10 can't eat more than $40 worth of food in a day?!"