Thinking of staying offsite...GASP, lol!!!

[ldhr2005]

We have stayed offsite before and know that there are definitely perks to it. The idea of taking a 1 year old and a 5 year old and staying in 1 room on property already gives me a headache! Staying on a bigger room on property in financially not an option.
I have looked into Bonnet Creek, Windsor Hills, ect...so many options. Just looking for opinions about where you like and why. Hoping that I can use all of your experiences to make an educated decision.

As a little background, we always rent a car regardless of where we stay so driving is not an issue. The kids love the pool so that is a consideration. We are looking at either a 3 bedroom condo vs a 3 bedroom townhouse w/splash pool as I think that my mom will be coming for a few days as well.

Thanks!

 

[WDWisTheBest]

We have stayed offsite before and know that there are definitely perks to it. The idea of taking a 1 year old and a 5 year old and staying in 1 room on property already gives me a headache! Staying on a bigger room on property in financially not an option.
I have looked into Bonnet Creek, Windsor Hills, ect...so many options. Just looking for opinions about where you like and why. Hoping that I can use all of your experiences to make an educated decision.

As a little background, we always rent a car regardless of where we stay so driving is not an option. The kids love the pool so that is a consideration. We are looking at either a 3 bedroom condo vs a 3 bedroom townhouse w/splash pool as I think that my mom will be coming for a few days as well.

Thanks!

As you wrote, Bonnet Creek, Windsor Hills and other similar properties are used extensively by many other guests. You will have the rental car and will probably not use Disney transportation extensively, so......... enjoy your offsite visit.

 

[crusoe2]

We've stayed at Windsor Hills our last two trips and we're booked there again for our trip in June. We've rented condos from www.vacationcentralflorida.com for the previous trips and we're renting one of their 3 bedroom townhouses next time. We've had really good luck with their properties and the prices are great. The townhouse is only costing us about $580 for the week.

One thing I've learned tho is that you need to be prepared for a truly self-catering set up or you may be disappointed in the experience. I'm not sure if Bonnet Creek provides daily housekeeping but none of the properties we've looked into at WH have it. You will need to put out the trash, wash your own dishes and towels, etc. And some owners request that you strip the beds, put dirty linens in the wash, etc at the end of your stay. If you don't mind all that, you can get some really good deals. Since the best price I've found so far for Bonnet Creek was substantially more than the townhouse we're renting (seems like BC was about $200 a night?), I think the little bit of housework is an okay tradeoff for the savings.

 

[ldhr2005]

I have stayed at an off site time share previously (a friend's), so I pretty much know what I am getting into as far as that goes. I have 2 small kids, so I am used to doing the dirty work, lol My husband brought up the same point ie: having to cook/clean on vacation. Honestly, I think staying on site is more work in that at least if I have a fridge/stove I can make stuff that I know that they will eat, have snacks for them...plus you cannot discount the ability to wash clothes when you have a 1 year old!

I too have been looking at VCF's properties. I think that if we do it, that is the way that we are going to go. Do you have any recommendations as far as the condo's are concerned? I am tossing up between that or a townhouse. Do you get your park tickets there? AAA? So many questions...sorry!!!

 

[TotoToo]

we have stayed on site, off site at hotels, timeshares and individual homes. By far we've found the timeshare resort 2 or 3 bedroom usually to be the best combination of room size, amenities and resort "feel". We particularly like a smaller resort with plenty of features in an areas that allows walking access to stores & restaurants we want to visit. The Lake Buena Vista area by DTD fits that to a tee and there are 1/2 dozen timeshares in that area that we like. Our favorite by a mile since we first saw it in 1992 is Cypress Pointe Resort. But the others in the area - Blue Tree & Cypress Pointe Grande Villas share the same great planned development & ease of walking access - easy automobile access to anything we want to do.

Overall we prefer a good timeshare over a house as we get more services, a more "resort" feel and it seems like a vacation. We enjoyed the house, it was impressive in space & decor (but that can vary widely depending on what/where you rent) but it was like being hme - not on vacation. That can be a plus if you want it - we prefer a real vacation feel (but with a full kitchen!) The best of both worlds - space, features and resort features. Timeshares - especially CPR - fits that bill for us.

 

[ldhr2005]

I looked on VRBO and did not see any for CPR. I was looking in Lake Buena Vista...is not that correct? If you don't mind me asking, where do you get your rental from? Thanks!

 

[TotoToo]

I looked on VRBO and did not see any for CPR. I was looking in Lake Buena Vista...is not that correct? If you don't mind me asking, where do you get your rental from? Thanks!

Timeshares like CPR show up for rent on Redweek, TUG example post & many other timeshare sites including Hotel Kingdom at least on occasion.

There are also rentals available directly from the resort at the VRI website.

 

[bcinohio]

Stayed offsite for the first time this past July and loved it. As far as tickets go I purchased ours from Undercover tourist and they came really fast and worked great.

 

[kathy884]

We've done onsite and offsite hotels, offsite home rental, and offsite condo timeshare resort rentals. I haven't stayed at Windsor Hills, though.

My very favorite option (seems like a great value to me) is to do a timeshare resort rental. I love the resort feel plus having the great space, kitchen, LV/DR, washer and dryer, screened in balcony plus close by resort ammenities -- pool, tennis courts, etc.

I often rent timeshare resorts from owners on sites like TUG2.net and Redweek.com. We always go high season. A two or three bedroom usually costs me between $800 and $1100 for the week. Resorts where I've been able to find rentals readily and that I really like include Sheraton Vistana Resort, Cypress Pointe, and Cypress Pointe Grand Villas. Marriott and Hilton properties are good too, but they usually rent for a little more. Polynesian Isles and Orange Lake are other good options too, although I don't usually see as many rentals for them as for the others.

I like to try different highly rated places (There are tons of terriffic options in Orlando // more than any other place I've ever vacationed), and I often pick my place based on what good rental values I see posted.

 

[greenclan67]

We have rented at Cypress Pointe Resort last March, and this year we are staying at Cypress Pointe Grande Villas! We found our timeshare rental on myresortnetwork.com and have used the same person 2 years in a row! I would pass his name on to you, but I know he is out of points until March. We had great dealings with him! Last year we paid $750 for 14 nights in a 3 bdrm and this year we are paying $700 for 11 nights in a 2 bdrm! It is a little more this year, but it was because it wasn't a full 2 weeks which messed up the prices for the ressie! But it was $490 for a week for my niece through him in a 2 bdrm!
There is a couple more on that website though!