Too good to be true-house rentals?

[41694love]

I cannot believe that I am finding places that are 80.00 a night for a full size brand new house. These places are awesome and with a family of six, I think this is the way to go for us. Any thoughts?

 

[LadyShea]

80.00 a night for a family of six, is a good price.

However I believe you are going in September, correct? If they offer free dining again this year, you could make up any accommodations savings with food savings by staying on property. In a house you can cook, but how much time will you spend in the house, and how many meals could you eat there? Probably breakfast only. Also parking/transportation costs of you stay off property need to be factored in.

Do a quick balance sheet and see what works best for you.

 

[karajeboo]

I have friends that did $700 for a 4 bedroom, with private pool for 7 nights over Spring Break. I just can't break away from staying on property though! Also, check out sky auctions. They really and truly have rentals available for $10-20/night for full size homes. It's not a joke! I have friends who did it and it worked out great! But I'm a chicken and just can't commit to something that "sounds too good to be true." Same friends also did a week long trip to the Dominican Republic, all inclusive, for $500/person! That included resort and air! They flew a FedEx jet (which actually has like 3 rows of seating), and said it was the most luxurious flight they've ever had. Sorry, didn't mean to go off on a tangent.

 

[Disneygirl26]

I guess I am the off man out, we always stayed in a rental house, my husband loves it,(he doesn't mind the driving) I like it because you have freedom and privacy of being our own home, depending on the type of house you get a private pool, a game room, a computer. and me and the family aren't stepping all over each other in a tiny hotel room. Also we always go in October when the parks close early so we have time to enjoy being in the house. We've stayed onsite, but once we rented a house I won't go back to the tiny hotel room.

 

[LadyShea]

I guess I am the off man out, we always stayed in a rental house, my husband loves it,(he doesn't mind the driving) I like it because you have freedom and privacy of being our own home, depending on the type of house you get a private pool, a game room, a computer. and me and the family aren't stepping all over each other in a tiny hotel room. Also we always go in October when the parks close early so we have time to enjoy being in the house. We've stayed onsite, but once we rented a house I won't go back to the tiny hotel room.

You're not the odd man out I personally stay off property, but only because our accommodations have, thus far, been free.

My dad travels 5 days a week for work, and so has almost unlimited hotel points, which we can use for a nearby two bedroom suite with kitchenette and free park shuttle. The last time we went to WDW was with a friend who used a time share swap so we had a 2 bedroom condo.

However, I think if I had to pay for accommodations, I would factor in all related costs as well as comfort and convenience issues. I am a big list maker so would have some kind of worksheet with pros and cons, LOL. I might seriously consider a house for a larger party, for the reasons you mentioned.

 

[HeatherSue]

We almost always stay in a rental house when we go to Disney! For our May trip, we've rented a 5 bedroom, 4 bath house with a private pool, game room, etc.. for $500/week ($609 after cleaning and taxes)!!! You can get great deals if you shop around! We love staying in a house. It's nice and private, you don't have to worry about noise from other guests, plus we get the pool all to ourselves!

 

[Doogan]

We did the free meal deal last year and stayed on site for the first time (other than Fort Wilderness). We loved the Disney atmosphere and the themed pools. We also enjoyed trying out a lot of restaurants we've never eaten at before. However, having tried both now we can definitely say we like staying off site in a house better. First, we like having separate rooms for the kids. Second, it's cheaper (even with the free meal plan). Third, it's more restful (the meal plan ended up dictating the pace of our vacation and we had to plan things out 180 days in advance with ADR's). We are only 8 hours drive away, which also makes it easier for us since we don't have to rent a car when we get there. Once you know your way around driving, it's not hard to get around and doesn't take long if you time things right.

All that said, I think it's a lot of fun to say on site sometimes as a splurge.

 

[katiesmom2]

We've rented a house twice and would do it in a hearbeat again. Our kids slept better because they each had their own room and we were happier because we could stay up at night watching TV, researching info on the computer, etc.

Both times, we had a screened-in pool too. Talk about heavenly!

I think we paid around $130 a night last February and that was for myself, DH, our two small kids and DH's parents in a four bedroom, 3 bath. They split the cost with us, so I think we paid around $80 a night - WOW!

We have nothing but great things to say about the experiences.

 

[Darcy03231]

Last August I paid $700/week for a 5 bdrm/3 bath private pool home. It included all taxes and fees. I would definitely do it again. It was one of the most relaxing vacations I've ever had.

 

[MinnieMe2DW]

We're renting a house with another couple, and couldn't be happier. We will have a nearly 3rd old and a 15 month old.. I like they'll each have their own room, and the big people don't have to tiptoe around and be stuck in one room like we would in a hotel. It's ideal and they have everything we'd ever need for the kids too.
http://www.sterlingvacationhomes.com/

 

[DebRMN]

AAACCK why do I read these?? We rented a house the last two years for our WDW trip. We love love loved it. My mom joined us too. It was perfect.

This year I have had the bug to stay onsite, but to make it financially feasable we are staying in the family suite at ASMu & doing the dining plan. We will skip the car rental because of it........& it will still cost us a little more than a 5 bedroom/4bath house with a car.

because of staying onsite, we are not bringing my mom with us.
I keep second guessing myself on what the right choice is. Last time I talked to dh he said, "well, we will know for sure after we get there" :lol
my kids are used to sleeping in their own room & have never slept with us (in our room)

Everytime I finally think, aaaah ok this will be good & fine........then I read this thread (or ones like it) & say WHY are we not just renting house again?????

 

[PrincessBelle39]

We did it in December and I can't imagine going back to a hotel room again. We are currently planning a trip for 2010 and thought about staying onsite. But the thought of no private pool, separate bedrooms for the kids etc, made us decide that we just had to rent a villa again. It was by far the best decision we made on the last trip.

 

[mlraabe]

We love rental houses. The kids can swim in their own pool and we don't have to drag a bunch of stuff to a public pool, we have the hot tub at night after the kids are in bed,plenty of TVs, game room own rooms, and bathrooms. Plus, the price can't be beat. I would like to stay on site some day but I don't think I could give up all of the great things we get with a rental house!

 

[teresajoy]

We almost always stay in a rental house when we go to Disney! For our May trip, we've rented a 5 bedroom, 4 bath house with a private pool, game room, etc.. for $500/week ($609 after cleaning and taxes)!!! You can get great deals if you shop around! We love staying in a house. It's nice and private, you don't have to worry about noise from other guests, plus we get the pool all to ourselves!

We are renting the house "directly over the road" from Heather for the same price. We love staying in a house! It's cheaper than a hotel for us, since we are sharing with two other familes.

 

[estherhead]

2 visits ago I contacted numerous house owners (value season) & asked them for their best possible price. We got a house near Davenport for maybe $70 per night? It was 5 bedrooms & awesome. It was rather far away. Then we went during free dining last year & staying at All Star Sports. Loved that, but this year are choosing to stay off site but at Windsor Hills right next door. Love having the extra room & our own pool. But also love staying closer.

 

[labdogs42]

You guys have inspired me to check out houses/condos for my September trip. I think it might be even cheaper than free dining!

 

[teresajoy]

I forgot to mention that when we were looking for houses this year, I emailed the owners to ask for lower rates, and most every one of them came down considerably on their prices.

 

[collcass]

We are actually doing both - onsite and a rental house. My kids wanted onsite but we are going with two other families plus we have 4 children of our own which forces us into two rooms.

We decided to fly down early and do a few nights onsite at both the beginning and end. We have a 7 bedroom house. We are paying $383/ couple for 8 nights in July which is less than $50/night compared to the close to $274/night for the 2 rooms at ASSR & Pop

 

[katiesmom2]

We've always used Award Vacation Homes and been very happy.

http://www.awardpoolhomes.com/