Resort hotel or International Drive Hotel ?

[ivorm]

We are planning a holiday in August and can't decide whether its best to stay at a Disney Resort Hotel or a hotel on International Drive, we are hoping to go for Two weeks.

I'd be grateful to hear any comments.

TIA

Ivor

 

[UKDEB]

Hi Ivor

Do you have any hotels in mind? If budget allows, I would choose a Disney hotel over one on International Drive. Staying onsite at Universal Studios is also well worth considering, especially if you're visiting at a busy time as you get "Front of the Line" access to all the rides. My choice would be to split the 2 weeks - I'd probably go for 11 days at Disney and 3 at Universal.

If you do decide to stay onsite, the key as far as cost is concerned, is to book the individual elements yourself. You will get plenty of advice here on how to get discounts and how to go about it all.

 

[simonuk]

my personal choice would be i drive u cant go wrong if u stay at 1 end sea world is there stay at the other end universal is there or even in the middle u have both parks at either end and wet and wild in the middle and all of the shops and restaurants
just my personal choice

 

[Hilary]

I think it depends on what you hope to do during the two weeks.

If your priorities are WDW and Universal, then Deb's split is an excellent suggestion as staying on-site does give you excellent perks at both resorts (transportation and early entry at WDW and Front of line at USF/IOA). The WDW transport option is a big bonus if you prefer not to have a rental car, and the Universal resorts are within walking distance of USF and IOA.

If you plan on spending quite a bit of time outside of the main parks ( maybe visiting SeaWorld, the water parks, shopping, Kennedy Space Centre, etc., etc.) and will have your own transport, then staying on-site becomes more of a luxury with perks you might not use to full advantage.

There are some great hotels all around Orlando, but the Disney and Universal ones take some beating as resorts in their own right!

 

[bluecdr]

You can rent Disney Vacatiob Club points on their rent/trade points board. They cost about $10 each and about 11 points per night for a studio at a Disney operated resort. There is nothing like the Magic of staying at a Disney resort. For August I would suggest Beach Club Villas attached to the Yacht and Beach Club Hotel. Walk into Epcot in 10 minutes and MGM in 25 minutes or take the boat. Fantastic pool with shipwreck called Storm Along Bay and all the amenities of a Disney luxury hotel for about $110 per night instead of the hotel charge of $500. The studio has a kitchen so you can save costs on eating out all the time and there is a laundry room which is good for a 2 week stay. Slight downside is they only do maid service every 4th day unless you pay extra.
If you want that luxury feel then rent a 2 bedroom with lounge/kitchen for about 32 points a night. A bit extra but a suite.King bed in master bedroom with a whirlpool bath. Queen bed and sofa bed in 2nd bed or sometimes 2 queens .
I usually have points to rent but they are all gone for this year. They are very easy to rent and there is an active market. Any queries send me an email: bluecdr@hotmail.com

 

[vernon]

It does depend on budget and your plans.

Certainly if you're planning to spend a lot of time at the Disney parks staying at a Disney hotel is by far the most convenient way to do it. There is a "premium" you pay for that convenience but they are great hotels with some great facilities. Obviously if you're not planing to concentrate on Disney and you wouldn't use the hotel facilities it's arguable that it's a bit of a waste of money.

If money is no object I would agree that splitting time between Disney and the Universal hotels is a fantastic way to do it, personally I would look at a split of 10 days on Disney and 3 or 4 on Universal because Disney has so much more to cover.

If finance comes into it staying on I-Drive will save you a fair amount, again splitting 7-7 Disney and I-Drive is a worklable choice ( IMHO moving off site for just 3 or 4 days isn't worth the time and effort to save the money)

 

[LJP]

We don't have any kids Ivor so have always managed to save the WDW magic till last!! DH and I base ourselves in IDrive for about 9 nights - last year we stayed at Crowne Plaza Universal - they laid on a free shuttle to Universal, the hotel was in a great position just off I Drive and we hired a car and drove around and took day trips to the coast. Our last 5 nights we stayed onsite at CS and totally imersed ourselves into Disney - great way to end the holiday!!

 

[Beth__WDW23/6/02]

I agree it's what your budget can afford.
We have always stayed at I-Drive like the quality inn plaza and international, this year we got a good deal for 4weeks and we are staying at QII and the All Stars Movie resort.
I like I-drive its busy and lots of things going on, many people are different...

I would just say go with what you can afford.

Beth

 

[ivorm]

Hi ppl,

MAny thanks for all your replies. I guess we'll have to weigh up the pros and cons and make a decision. Your comments have all helped.

Regards,

Ivor