So, what can you NOT do when staying offsite?

[Dallas_Lady]

Okay, so now that we have our first child I am really starting to see some of the benefits to staying offsite. Plus, we are thinking of doing a multi-family trip next year and renting a pool home is making a lot of sense.

So, honestly, what is it that we won't be able to do by not being a Disney resort guest? Why do I feel like I'll be walking around the parks with a big scarlet "Offsite Guest" hanging from my chest

 

[powellrj]

the only things you can't do are Extra magic hours, be on the dining plan, charge to your room key and use the magical express. There may be a couple of other things, but those are the big ones.

 

[DVCLiz]

Offsite guests pay to park each day - I believe the current charge is $9.00. If you are going to drive your own car to the parks each day, factor that cost into your budget.

 

[MiaSRN62]

Package delivery to your room. The stores can send your packages to the front of the park but there are some drawbacks to that 1) they usually require several hours to get it there. So if you buy something at 2 pm and want to leave the park at 4 pm, it most likely would not have reached guest services at the front by that time. 2) if you park hop, then you'd have to pick up your bags and carry them to the next park. Being an onsite guest, you can buy, and have them delivered to your resort the next day. Some may or may not see this as a perk....I happen to utilize it often.
Another thing that I consider a perk---mostly in regards to the MK---is using the disney transportation. I find that when I stay offsite, the MK is the biggest pain to get in and out of. It can take 30-45 min from the moment you park your car in the MK parking lot to actually get into the park. When staying onsite, the busses/monorail take you right up to the park entrance. Saves ALOT of time especially when entering and exiting with little ones for rest breaks/naps. The other parks are not nearly as difficult to get in and out of and often times even easier when staying offsite and having little ones.
Also for offsite, factor a rental car into your cost in addition to the daily parking fee. When staying onsite, one can rely soley on disney transportation and save the cost of a rental. Some prefer it, some don't , but regardless it's an option not normally afforded to an offsite guest.
And, no, you will not stand out in the crowd as an offsite guest. I stay both on and offsite and noone knows one guest from another. Don't let that bother you. Everyone has a good time

 

[hmp2z]

My DH & I like to take mini breaks at our hotel, and I can imagine that this would be especially important if we had a child who would need a nap. We stay at monorail resorts or Epcot resorts, so that it's easy for us to come "home" during the day - if we were off property, this would be such a hassle that we would probably just stay home once we'd left the park. Actually, we live here, and that's what we do when we visit as day guests!

As someone else said, parking costs $$, and you have to park in the lots and then take the tram in, or else, in the case of the MK, take the monorail in after parking at the TTC. It's kind of a schlep, and I wouldn't want to do it with a small child.

There's also the psychological benefit of getting to avoid seeing all the crap that's been spawned by Disney's proximity. 192 is simply hideous.

Cheers!
Heather W

 

[Our2Girls&Disney]

I have done both. I can tell you that I thought staying on site was the best. I loved getting on the bus, heading to the park, and we would also head back for an afternoon swim and back agan to the parks. Staying off site makes a task like this more challenging, but not impossible. As you can see from my signature we will be staying offsite this time. Staying offsite is not terrible. You can get really nice accomdations for a much lower price. Have fun making your decision. My only recommendation is don't stay too far away from the gates because going back and forth can be tiresome.

 

[MiaSRN62]

There's also the psychological benefit of getting to avoid seeing all the crap that's been spawned by Disney's proximity. 192 is simply hideous.

Our timeshare is on SR 535 and it's not bad at all as far as proximity to WDW. Hotels on International Drive and further down on 192 would need to allow more time. The location of the offsite resort could make a difference.

 

[mareed]

You won't have to pay a large bill at the end of your stay for a regular hotel room. Instead, you'll have the option of spending much less money on accomodations (could be half or less) and get much more in the way of space if you choose one of the many close-by condo options.

You won't get to wait in line for a bus that you just missed, and then get to stand on that bus at the end of a long day at the parks. Instead, you get to walk right out to your car (or take a tram) and immediately sit down and leave the park and head home.

As you can tell, I'm a big fan of staying off-site. With kids, it's so nice to have separate bedrooms, multiple bathrooms, and a kitchen that we get with a condo. We have AP's, so we don't pay for parking at the parks. Package delivery to the front of the park works just fine for me.

It's great that there are different options for everyone! And yes, I have stayed on-site on 3 different trips, and just don't see the value for what you pay.

 

[5mins2disney]

You'll definitely miss rolling over in bed and seeing your kids awake in the bed next to you cause they're in the same room with you...and you'll miss watching all of the same TV shows on your one shared, small TV! Oh..you'll miss eating out every single meal, you'll miss the overpriced hotel room minibar, you'll miss paying for internet access, oh..and let's not forget..you'll miss the LOUD typical wall unit type hotel room air conditioner! OH, I particularly miss the loud noises from the hallway ice machine in the middle of the night! And, I sure miss having to share 1 bathroom with my wife and kids while on vacation, gosh, I miss it so much I feel bad for all those offsite people living in total deprivation of all these great amenities!

 

[isla bonita]

You will miss having to share your pool with strangers.

You will miss the thin walls and hearing everyone walking by your room.

You will miss having a bad cup of coffee.

You will miss hanging out with your family on the 2 chairs and beds.

You will miss not slipping into a hot tub or pool after hours.

You will miss paying $$ for all your meals, drinks, snacks and beverages.

You will miss paying big $$$ for all this.

 

[hercamore]

Parking is free at the parrks to AP holders. Just a thought.

Also, as mentioned there are many lovely hotels and condos and timeshare near downtown disney that are actually closer to the the parks than some disney resorts.

busing is not all it's cracked up to be as I found out at Pop Century in August. quicker to drive than use busses.

herc.

 

[disneysteve]

You will miss having to share your pool with strangers.

You will miss the thin walls and hearing everyone walking by your room.

You will miss having a bad cup of coffee.

You will miss hanging out with your family on the 2 chairs and beds.

You will miss not slipping into a hot tub or pool after hours.

You will miss paying $$ for all your meals, drinks, snacks and beverages.

You will miss paying big $$$ for all this.

I agree completely!

hmp2z - Taking breaks offsite can be quicker and easier than doing so onsite, depending on where you are staying. The past two years, we stayed at Orbit One Villas. I timed the drive from Animal Kingdom to the door of our condo at 4 minutes! There is not way staying onsite would be quicker than that. From MGM was just a minute or two longer. We are currently staying in Windsor Palms and that's only a couple of minutes farther than Orbit One, so maybe 7 or 8 minutes from AK and 10 or so minutes from MGM. Very easy to do a break during the day, as we've been doing each day this week.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

I have always supported staying off-site, the only downside (depending on where you are staying), is the lack of on-site entertainment facilities in the evening.

We generally stay in a villa, for so many reasons, however with our son being such an early riser in the morning (normally about 5am), we find he is tired in the early evening and generally does not want to go out.
Hence the evenings, when you have to stay in can sometimes be a bit dull.

Guess the perfect situation is an off-site villa with a clubhouse etc

 

[FLParadisevilla]

Staying off site I miss...

Sleeping in uncomfortable cheap hotel beds!

Having to go down the hall to get ice for a drink.

Being able to cook a meal or brownies,or cookies for the group

opening the freezer for an ice cream with out having to go outside for it.

Mixing up a pitcher of Pina Colada's and enjoying them while floating in a pool that is not full of people that I don't know.

Having a 5 tv's in the house and being albe to watch what I want to watch when I want to... as well as having full Digital Cable TV and not the 4 channels or so that you get in a hotel!

Taking my laptop out by the pool to answer emails again while still having all the privacy that you could want!

Oh did I mention that calling and ordering Pizza or Chinese etc. to have it delivered to your door for a normal price and not Disney prices.

I think that list covers most of the reasons we stay off stie and not on site! Plus I can take my dogs with me if I choose!

 

[HeatherC]

I think no matter what people decide....on or off site, they can have a wonderful trip.

Personally, I can't justify the price of staying onsite...FOR US....we are a family of five and would either need two connecting rooms, rent points from a DVC owner or cram ourselves into one room at the POLY or Contemporary. If our family was smaller, I'd definitely do it. For shorter trips, I'd also think it would be great. But we go for at least 10 days so that also comes into play.

We just love to spread out, have a kitchen, washer, dryer, jacuzzi tub, etc.. Just a personal preference. And I certainly don't spend my vacation cooking or cleaning. I may buy some pre-made convenience items to have to eat and put a load of laundry in the washer before I go to bed. I then pop it into the dryer on the way out in the morning and it's clean when I need it. Also saves a ton of room on packing and lugging luggage.

On another related topic....just had to say how I find it very funny when people mention paying for parking. When you are able to save what could be literally hundreds of dollars a night by staying 5 minutes offsite, what is the big deal of paying $10 for parking and being able to leave when you want and not have to wait for a bus. That just cracks me up. And I know some will now say it's not hundreds of dollars, but it truly can be. When the Poly can sell for over $300 a night and you can get a beautiful timeshare for less than $100, that's a lot of money. I just chuckle each time I read that.

Anyway.....you will have a wonderful trip no matter where you are. Have fun with all your planning!!!

HeatherC

 

[lovethattink]

Offsite guests pay to park each day - I believe the current charge is $9.00. If you are going to drive your own car to the parks each day, factor that cost into your budget.

It just recently went up to $10...ouch!

 

[MiaSRN62]

HeatherC says : On another related topic....just had to say how I find it very funny when people mention paying for parking. When you are able to save what could be literally hundreds of dollars a night by staying 5 minutes offsite, what is the big deal of paying $10 for parking and being able to leave when you want and not have to wait for a bus. That just cracks me up. And I know some will now say it's not hundreds of dollars, but it truly can be. When the Poly can sell for over $300 a night and you can get a beautiful timeshare for less than $100

Sure Heather...but I have gotten the value resorts for $59 ! There was a Dec AP rate for that amount this year. I've paid $79/night for POP this year too. I got the Beach Club for $160/night this summer with an AP rate and it sleeps 5. This is a deluxe resort with lots of amenities. We had a great stay here and loved being able to use the SAB pool. There are other options besides the Poly for those that want them. POR has rooms that sleep 5 (fifth person being under age 8 or 9 or so). Two value rooms......AS Music family suites........there are some options if you really want to stay onsite. Just as there are options for staying offsite.

And I mentioned the parking price of $9 but this is in addition to having to rent a vehicle. We rented a minivan for 10 days for $525 this year for an offsite stay. I think it's only logical to tabulate rental car and parking fees into the budget when considering staying offsite. For our 10 day stay, the van and parking fees came to about $600 (plus gas going back and forth for 10 days---another $40 or so). This is an amount that could be eliminated if one stayed onsite and needed to trim the budget. So I don't think it's "funny" at all ?
My friends are staying at POP this Dec for $59/night and not renting a car. So even if you needed 2 rooms (larger families), you can stay at the Values during certain times of the year for about $120/night (give you 4 full sized beds and 2 bathrooms) and don't require a rental. Also the All Star Music resort has the family suites that sleeps 6 and has 2 bathrooms. They can go for $169-$200/night in value/reg season. This allows you all the perks of onsite and don't need to drive if you don't want to. You don't have the option to not drive staying offsite. It might not be important to you or some others here, but many find this a huge benefit. So this shouldn't be dismissed by some of you (i.e. "cracks me up"). Not everyone wants to drive back and forth to the parks (sometimes several times a day), or cook.....or clean ? I personally don't really mind driving back and forth (except from the MK !), but I will also confess when I stay onsite, we love the convenience of the disney busses (rarely wait longer than 15 min for them this past summer and Oct).
I think it's great that we give the OP pros and cons of each because there are indeed positives and negatives to BOTH onsite and offsite. Just because one works for one person, we cannot assume it works for everyone ? I totally understand why the OP is considering a rental home. It's a great alternative but there are "some" downsides, just as there are to everything in life.
Also people mention uncomfortable/cheap hotel beds. We actually like our beds at the disney resorts we've stayed at. Actually, my offsite timeshare (Vistana) has the most uncomfortable bed I've ever experienced (ever !) in the master bedroom. It's like a rock. I wake up with a sore neck and back every morning. So offsite doesn't necessarily equate to better beds---even if you're renting a home.

Oh did I mention that calling and ordering Pizza or Chinese etc. to have it delivered to your door for a normal price and not Disney prices.

You can do this at many disney resorts as well. We've used Papa John, Dominos and Giordanos to deliver pizza etc to the door. Disney also has their own, reasonably priced delivery pizza to certain resorts as well.

While I agree, offsite timeshares or rental homes can be a fantastic option for many, I don't see the reason to "put-down" staying at disney resorts either ? There are clear pros and cons to each and most have been mentioned here. Everyone has different needs and expectations while on vacation. I just hate to see this thread turning into an "anti onsite" theme. I don't think that was the intent of the Dallas_Lady's question.

 

[HeatherC]

Maria - I truly was not trying to "put down" staying onsite. Really. I even mentioned I would love to do it if our family was smaller or if we went for shorter trips.

I know you can get Disney rooms for a really good price and that there are tons of discounts on rooms....that's why I love these boards. I was just using the example for our family. We prefer a villa over two value or moderate rooms - like being able to spread out a little more...that's all. And the deluxes are a little out of our budget for 5 people for 10-12 days since we go so much.

I hope I didn't offend anyone. The Disney resorts are great and beautiful. Every family is different and wants different things out of a vacation. That's how it should be. Everyone's vacation should be as terrific as it can be for them.

As far as the parking goes, I guess I was just thinking of all the posts I've read in the past (not necessarily yours in particular) that really think this is a big deal. To me it's not. That's all. I have always rented a minivan or full size for 10-12 nights for less than what one or two nights at a moderate or deluxe Disney resort would cost us. We also just prefer the freedom of a car and like to go exploring too. There is nothing wrong about staying onsite and using Disney transportation. That's what it is there for. A lot of people don't like in a strange city too. I can understand that.

If my post came across nasty, I really do apologize. That was not the intent. I think that sometimes with written type that happens more often than not since you can't really see the nuances behind what someone is trying to say.

So I say...that any Disney trip is great. And I also do not like the battle that seems to wage between on or off site. I think they are both terrific options for everyone. That's what's so great about Orlando and why we keep going back....the fact that there are so many options for families.

I'll try to be more careful in my wording from now on.

Have a great day and happy Disney planning to all!!
Heather C

 

[darlene9947]

I just have to chime in with my take on onsite/offsite. I stayed at Vistana Resort in May, 2005. It was my first time driving to the parks, even though we always drive to Disney, never fly. I have a handicapped tag and even when I stayed onsite this past August, I still drove to the parks. The few times I waited for Disney busses, I was kind of antsy to get going right now but waiting on a bus. No matter where I stay, onsite or offsite, I will always drive to the parks, even MK.

 

[spiceycat]

like Maria I do both.

besides EMH, DME, disney transportation in general, delivery your purchases, being able to charge your purchase with your room key, haven't your tickets on your room key - the big difference is the CM. On site they will generally go the extra mile for you. Not a problem and will try their best to please you.

offsite - varies - greatly. Now the ones at CWR were great. they really, really try to make you happy. even with a language problem that didn't stop them.

with VV - the front desk was great - but the rest of the staff. I say good morning no matter where I am - the looks I got from their staff - say it all. Plus there was somebody in the entrance way in each building to help you - but he was only interested in selling to you.

I found the maintence, front desk, life guards at VV to be excellent but the rest of the staff needs to learn about customer relations.

at other places it can be worst - one hotel I checked into the person who gave me a room was so high (drugs) that the next morning they didn't know I had checked in....

when you stay offsite you might have a wonderful experience or awful - alot depends upon the staff. Some places try their best even when they are small and don't have the stuff of a bigger place. Other places don't care at all.... I try to avoid these....

every person experience is different - because every person is different. what I love you might hate.

Try offsite - you might love it and never want to stay onsite again. Or you might say what did I get my self into.... I wish every trip to Disney was great, carefree, and the best trip of a lifetime - but they aren't.

or you can be like alot of us and start doing both offsite and onsite. you get the best of both worlds.

I like to stay (this year) on site for Sun - the MK EMH nights is Sunday. So I will try to stay onsite for Sun. but offsite the rest of the week. what I generally do is check in offsite on fri or sat - rest that day - next day go to the parks. If it is Sunday go to my WDW resort and check in EARLY. then if Disney is also having EMH that morning get on a Disney bus and go. spend that night at Disney (my relatives go back to offsite) and the next afternoon go back to offsite. This works great for me - but others don't like to move for even one night.

the reason I mention this year - last year EMH was on different nights - so next year they could change again.

offsite I will go to each of the Disney parks except MK. It is just to darn hard to get back and forth. However I do park at Epcot and ride the monrail to the MK. then change to the MK one. which is much easier for me. You may not find that a benefit. Everyone is different.

however if you plan to stay offsite - get a good map. Disney does not tell people about their shortcuts. One time coming back from WDW I decided to follow their signs - it amount to 22 miles - but my route was 9 miles.... Now there wasn't a great difference in time - my route had more stop lights. but I hate to waste gas. but Disney is know for this - if there is a short way to go and a long way - Disney will send you on the long way.

you can get a good map for Kissimmee (not Orlando) here

www.floridakiss.com
get use this one
http://www.floridakiss.com/tools/requestinfo/index.php

it is a magazine with several maps of the Kissimmee and parts of Disney. If you stay in the Kissimmee area (where most of the houses are located) - it is a definite help.

for Orlando
www.orlandoinfo.com
Now I don't like their maps - they are very, very small and hard to read - my opinion