Splitting the Family On/Off Site

[salmoneous]

Trying to plan a family trip for next year, and nothing seems just right. However, I did come up with one "crazy" idea that just might solve a lot of problems. Curious to hear your thoughts on the plan - and give the moral police a chance to convine me that I'm abusing the system...

Going on the trip are:

Wife/Me
Mom/Dad
Brother/SIL/Nephews 3,6,8

Rather than try and find one place that would meet everyone's needs/budget, we could book 1 room at a deluxe resort on site, and two rooms (or a condo) off site. At night, wife/me would sleep in (relative peace and quiet) onsite, sending the rest of the family offsite. During the days, anyone who nees to rest or nap could head to the onsite room. Having the onsite room would allow me to take the boys to EMH, swiming in the pool, etc.

Thoughts?

 

[DisneyGeek2000]

The boys would need resort ID's to use EMH.

 

[sandraB]

I think that it is hard to accomodate different needs/budgets when travelling with family, and if you find a way that works...why not!

Anyway, just my opinion....

 

[maxiesmom]

The first thing that pops into my mind is that your resort key is also your charge card. So if someone else went back to the room either you or your wife would not have it to use. Also unless you booked everyone into on-site rooms they would not be able to go to the EMH's. Why not book 2 rooms at POR? Given the ages of the children that would seem to be the best option. What deluxe resort were you thinking of? At the Y&BC they are known for checking for ID's at the pool area which would also be a problem.

 

[lookingforward]

Make sure you list the boys on your room, there should not be an extra charge and they would then have resort ID. I think that is a good idea, or perhaps you might try getting three rooms at a value resort or moderate. As for the moral police, not from me. I don't think you are doing anything wrong.

 

[dgaston]

You might want to visit hotelkingdom.com and look at rate for Cypress Pointe. We've stayed in both the 2 br and studio portion of their 3 br and found it great for our needs. Check out the Orlando Hotels and Attractions boards too.

Another option, much pricier, is to rent points from a DVC member for a 2 br at one of the DVC resorts on property. You could look at the Rent and Trade board here.

HTH

 

[Rhonda]

The boys would need resort ID's to use EMH.

That's correct - they check everyone's ID at the gate in the mornings for EMH.

How about 3 rooms at a Moderate onsite? The Port Orleans Riverside is very nice, and the rooms are large enough to accomodate your Brother's family. You and your wife could have your own room, and your parents could have their own room! The price would probably be close to what you would pay for a condo offsite.

Also, if they stay offsite, they would have to pay for parking at the parks during the day, because they wouldn't be allowed to park in your resort lot without an ID.

 

[whacked]

I think it would be more of a nightmare to get everyone together in the mornings than it would be worth if you are planning to tour the parks together.

I think I'd book more rooms at a less expensive resort, but that's just me.

Your mileage may vary.

 

[Planogirl]

I think that budget could be a problem with the three rooms onsite. You'd probably pay at least $400 night at a moderate while you can get a pretty decent condo or home for around $150 to $200 a night.

Is a kitchen important to members of your group? Does anyone plan to see offsight places? Does everyone want lots of privacy? Also, many offsite resorts have great pools themselves but would anyone want to drive back and forth?

These might all be things to think about.

 

[gigi1313]

i think your plan sounds great, assuming you'll be staying at a monorail resort it really makes sense... and there's no "abuse" of the system if you list the boys on your resort ressie... so no need for the moral police! LOL!

another option would be to book one room at a deluxe and two at a value and give each of the boys the opportunity to spend the night w/you (or your parents! LOL! or both!) for some quality special one-on-one time... not to mention giving their parents a break as well...

 

[Deb & Bill]

If you decide to go with the DVC option, you'll need at least a two bedroom AND a studio. Or two studios and one 1-bedroom. You have too many for a two bedroom. The room limit would be eight and you have nine.

But it you go with your plan, why spend all the money on the deluxe room. Go with the cheapest you can get at a value. It fits the scenario you are planning.

 

[The Sweetness]

Seems to me like it would be easier to just get 3 rooms at a value resort. Everyones close together, all have privaleges (sp?), and great location for easy transportation. You dont HAVE TO spend all day together, every day, but this would give e/1 equal convenience, for about $300 per night (all 3 rooms). Or if you want a *special* room for you and your wife, get 2 value rooms and a deluxe. Personally, Id stay at value with the fam, and have a second trip, at another time, just for you and DW at the deluxe to be pampered (If that's important)

Either way, have a great time!

 

[maxiesmom]

I keep wondering what ameneties the deluxe resorts have that you would split up your group to stay at one? Please come back OP and fill us in!

 

[the kabuki]

would just get three rooms at a value resort. sounds like too much of a headache trying to coordinate that

 

[ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!]

I would go with a 2 bedroom villa through DVC. Keeps everyone together safe n sound.

 

[gigi1313]

I keep wondering what ameneties the deluxe resorts have that you would split up your group to stay at one? Please come back OP and fill us in!

i would guess that the appeal of the deluxe is the convenience to the parks, esp magic kingdom if the OP goes w/a monorail resort... so if one of the kids needs a nap (or one of the adults for that matter) it's a short hop away... of course, i could be totally off-base here...

 

[tmt martins]

You could also get the Deluxe then 2 values for the rest just put 1 of the kid on the Grand parents room they can still stay in their parents room but a nice sleepover might fit in as well.

 

[Huckleberry]

Sounds like a plan.

 

[goofie4goofy]

We did the same exact thing 4 years ago with exactly the same people. It was a nightmare. Because there were people in my family who "cheaped out" and did not want to stay at the Poly. I thought after dinner they would like to come to the room and watch the fireworks...did not hapen...thye wanted to go back to their room with their stuff. No one ever used our room - ever. It sounded good on paper, but when it came down to it it just did not work everyone went their own way and back to their own room. The most frustrating thing was for us. We all decided to have dinner together every nght. Since we were on the monorail we were early for dinners every night and every night we had to wait a min of 45 minutes for them to arrive due to driving, parking and getting to the restaurant. They also had to leave the parks way earlier than we did due to getting to the car, driving to their hotel. Meeting them in the AM was just as bad, since we just had to jump on the monorail...we hung around for hours waiting for them. We had cell phones too and it was just horrible. My DH and I would get 1/2 days worth of rides in before they even got to the parking lot. They stayed at the Grovesners, which was really gross, and the bus service was so terrible they wound up using the car to go everywhere. They lost a lot of time and hated their rooms. They had to switch rooms twice...the first one smelled like vomit and the other room smelled like feet. So my advice to you is to find an onsite hotel in which everyone can agree on. It is a nightmare if you don't. With the small children and the large group, I would recommend a monorail hotel. It does not have to be costly, but on vacation time is money. I am speaking from experience from the same exact scenario - down to the kids ages. Young children can really throw a monkey wrench into the works too, since their needs come first, so it is best if everyone is in the same convenient location.

It was our worst WDW vacation ever.

 

[salmoneous]

Much thanks to everybody for the thoughts and advice. I'll consider everything carefully, especially the advice to "not do it". Anyway, here is the basic dilemma I was trying to solve:

With three kids, my brother has great needs and wants but limited finances. The Value Resorts won't work, as the rooms are just too small. Even if we send one of the kids to sleepover with Grandma, these kids (and their Mom) just need a certain amount of space to keep from killing each other. The family could survive in Moderate, but they would feel cramped. Not to mention the cost would strain their finances. Doesn't sound vacation-y to me. Neither they nor my parents can afford to stay in Deluxe.

Which sends them offsite. They can fit a nice suite hotel or condo into their budget, but lose out on the advantages of staying onsite. Perhaps the biggest loss is a room which can be easily reached during the day for the youngest nephew (as well as my Mom and Dad) to take naps and rest breaks.

So they want what everyone does - onsite amenities at offsite prices. Is there any way I can help them achieve that? Unfortunately, just offering money wouldn't go over well. But by staying onsite, I can give them many of the benefits - a room during the day, use of the pools for the kids, EMH, a parking pass, etc.

Why Deluxe? Location. We'd stay at a monorail resort for the MK days, and then move to a Boardwalk-area Resort if we want to go to Epcot or MGM. Also, don't we need to stay at a Deluxe to get 5 resort ID's?

Yes, splitting apart will create some headaches trying to get everybody together. I'm thinking it may be worth it. And, to be totally honest, if staying in different locations means the entire family won't get to spend every second of every day with all of us in the same place doing the same thing, that won't be the end of the world.

Thanks again for all the advice,
Sal