staying offsite

[Keely]

This is our first trip, and we are staying off-site (about 15 miles away at Windsor Palms) to save some money. My daughter will almost be three when we go in June. I am wondering if it is at all possible to leave, go back to the resort for nap time, then come back later. I keep seeing people say things like, "We are staying off-site, so we won't be taking a break during the day" etc.. I just don't know how we could make it through the day without a break in the heat of June.
Is the parking/transportation so crazy that this won't be possible? (We will be driving a rental to the parks)
I am used to Disneyland - I guess this is a whole other ball game!
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[tazdeb]

It's your vacation, don't feel you have to do everything and see everything. Sure you can take an afternoon break, just make sure you buy the park hopper plus pass. Then get to the park at opening see what you can leave at noon come back at 4 or 5 and see what you can.at either the same park or a different one. You won't see everything ,but so what, your kids will be happy. Spliting parks is a great way to see Disney. Go mornings to Animal Kingdom nights at MGM. Mornings at magic Kingdom , nights at Epcot. Then switch it around. Another thing to do is make sure you bring or rent a stroller, you'll be surprised at how much they'll sleep and while they do you can do the kids swap on the adult rides....have fun.....TAZ

 

[grinningghost]

Absolutely take a break. We've stayed off-site and left to go back to our hotel - it's not that big a deal. With a 3 year old, you NEED that break. WDW is so overwhelming for adults, for kids it's 1000 times worse. You will all have a happier vacation with the break, and 15 miles isn't so bad. Have fun.

 

[Gillian]

Windsor Palms is NOT 15 miles away! 15 minutes, maybe, but not 15 miles. It's very close to the AKL. If you're not sure about how to go the back way, PM me or ask on the Orlando board.

It's actually a very short drive & we had no problem going back there for afternoon breaks. Well, actually we did have 1 problem, which is that DS 2 1/2 would sometimes fall asleep in the car, often as soon as he was sitting in his seat!

The other problem is that sometimes we didn't feel like going out again, but this can happen no matter where you stay. We tried to get as much done in the early morning as we could. Hit the parks at opening, do a little commando touring & then slow down as the crowds increased.

When we went in september (DS was almost 2 then) he napped in his stroller most days. MK & AK closed very early, so not having to go back to the room was nice. We were onsite, but it still took a while to get back to our room (AKL, BCV). Because the crowds were very small we were able to do a lot in a short period of time, relax in the late afternoon, have dinner and possibly hit MGM or Epcot later.

 

[goofyernmost]

I have always stayed off-site. I am not familier with the location you are refering to but I can tell you that it is easy to come and go whenever you want. The thing that throws most people off is the huge distance from, lets say, the back of Magic Kingdom to the parking lot. First it's the walk to the front, up to the Monorail terminal, the ride around the lagoon, the tram ride to the parking area you are in and sometimes the walk down a long row of cars to get to yours. Other than that it is hastle free.

Because of the sometimes oppressive heat in June in Florida, taking a break is really important. There are a lot of shady areas and air conditioned food courts to stop in for whatever time you need but going back to the hotel, taking a nap, a dip in the pool and then returning late afternoon and staying in the evening is an excellent way to do it.