What are the pro/cons of staying on/offsite?

[Lisa P.]

--- Family of 5 with 3 kids (2 quite young).
--- Will have your own vehicle.
--- Staying at least 7 days.
--- Tight budget.
--- Planning a couple of non-Disney days (Universal).
--- Sounds like your first visit.

Ding-ding-ding-ding... We have a winner! HIFS! Or consider another offsite suite/condo/villa with either breakfast included or additional comforts & amenities. We've stayed onsite and offsite, many times each. Here's my personal take on the onsite hotels:

The Disney Value hotels are just dressed-up motels with a pricy food court and very good bus shuttle service (probably would not return). The Disney Moderates are dressed-up motels with a pricy food court, good bus shuttle service and excellent landscaping (nice pools with pool slides too). But the Disney deluxe properties are truly delightful. They are lovely hotels with tons of theme, convenience to the parks, fun (pricy) restaurants and most offer exceptional main pool areas... as well as very high-end rates for what you get. The Disney Home-Away-From-Home suites are a mixed bag. Transportation varies from very poor to very good, depending on which one you get. A 1BR or 2BR villa at a DVC property is lovely (and overpriced, IMHO, even with private rentals from members, for most time periods)!

For a first time visit to Orlando, you will undoubtedly spend very, very little time at your motel, hotel or resort. Think carefully about your agenda before you drop a small fortune on a pretty Disney hotel.

If you are able to afford an onsite suite or 2 rooms, you'd enjoy the space and privacy, as well as the convenience. But it comes at a stiff price onsite.

Offsite hotel suites, private pool homes, timeshare condos all offer a much more restful sleep between all that running around at the parks. Many have very pleasant pool areas as well as good locations to the theme parks.

When we've wanted to enjoy the onsite theme of a particular Disney resort, we've spent a week offsite in a luxury timeshare villa. Then we've ended our trip with a night or two at an onsite Disney Deluxe hotel. That day or two onsite was spent enjoying the resort and its amenities, resting up after a busy week, swimming & boating.

As for Early Entry (or whatever they are calling it these days... magic hour?), with such young children, you may find it more stressful that it's worth, to get everyone up and ready so early in the morning anyway. I'd suggest that you skip it and visit the parks on the days when they are not offering EE. It's really only any use at MK and FastPass helps there too. E-night is too exhausting with young children. Package pick-up is available near the exit gates at all parks, regardless of where you are staying. I've driven to the Disney parks from some offsite locations in less time than waiting for and taking a bus from Disney All Stars or Fort Wilderness Cabins. HIFS ought to fall into that category.

That takes care of most of the onsite privileges.

So my recommendation for the OP, in their particular situation is definitely... HIFS. And I wouldn't look back! HTH!

 

[NomadFamily]

We are staying off-site this year and always have in the past. I actually was going to stay on site this year, but made a last minute decision to switch. I still have reservations at the Dolphin.
But, we like to travel and stay for a long vacation....12 days this time...15 days last time. Because of the length of our stays, we stay off site because of the condo options......multiple bedrooms (16 y/o old son brings a friend), kitchen (esp. for breakfast), multiple TVs (nobody wants to watch the same thing and I don't want to moderate TVs on my vacation), washer/dryer in the room (don't have to pack for 2 weeks), cost, and just plain having space.....which is huge to me. I agree that we lose the magic of sleeping in a Disney hotel....which doesn't bother me at all (hey, just being honest...I love WDW, but not to the point that many of you do) But, I do think that my 5 y/o would enjoy the Disney hotels more...but she would also enjoy a stress-free mommy and hotel space that isn't cramped in a room with her 16 y/o bro and his friend. Plus, for the 12 days I am trying to stick to a $3k budget (hotel, car, food, park tix). Any more than that and I might be depressed when we get home. THAT is a sure way to lose the magic (when the bill arrives) lol. Hence, I pay cash for the trip.

 

[Local_Girl]

I totally agree with LisaP and NomadFamily--the space and amenities in offsite suites and villas can't be beat, especially for the price. We can stay for an entire week (7 nights) in an offsite timeshare property (WITHOUT having to do the timeshare presentation...) for the price of ONE night in some deluxe WDW resorts. Just can't justify the price difference for the "magic" that we feel in the parks (love it there ), and actually prefer not to be immersed in it 24x7. My DH prefers to drive everywhere anyway and we like having a full kitchen and washer/dryer in the villa. We plan to enjoy the onsite resorts during our upcoming trip on non-park days...and no, we won't be in the pools--LOL! .

Good luck whatever you decide, and have a great trip!

 

[nicolep91]

I also agree that "magic" is what you make of it.

Everyone's situation is different, but staying onsite doesn't have any benefits over offsite for us. We don't like to rely on buses and always rent a car. We also don't like to get up extra early on vacation for early entry. Those are really the only reasons I can see for staying onsite and if those are important to you, then you might want to pay twice as much for the privilege of being "onsite".

Many here on DIS (no offense to anyone) can make you feel as though you would be missing something by not staying at a Disney hotel. I fell into that thinking on our 1st trip and we scrimped and saved until we had enough to stay onsite. We're going to be at HIFS for our next trip and we're really looking forward to having the extra room, tvs, kids activities, free breakfast, etc. - not to mention the extra money to spend on some nice dinners and souveniers!

Hope you have a great vacation whatever you decide!

 

[ellie&mattys mom]

they do have there pros and cons...
hard to find a hotel for 5 except Dixie Landings and HIFS would be less expensive and we will get more...

I am a little leary but I will try it and looking forward to it...

I am also considering the Dolphin but feel that I would be spending so much more on food...

hard decisions...

 

[disneysteve]

This is an age-old debate and add me to the list of off-site devotees. I've stayed on-site 8 times (Fort Wilderness, Contemporary, Caribbean Beach, All-Star) and off-site 13 times (Pool homes, EconoLodge Hawaiian, Days Inn LBV, Days Suites Old Town, etc.).

I personally see nothing that makes the on-site prices worth it. Except for the monorail, I will not use Disney transportation. Whether on-site or off-site, I greatly prefer driving everywhere. Years ago when there was 1 park and 3 hotels, Disney transport was the way to go. Now, I just feel it is too overwhelmed. I can virtually always get from point A to point B faster by getting in my car and driving.

Cost is a HUGE issue. For quite a bit less than the All-Star, I can get a 1-bedroom suite offsite with a full kitchen. For about as much as a Disney moderate, I can rent a 3-bedroom house with inground pool, washer and dryer, garage, kitchen, 2 or more TV's, etc. In my book, there is just no comparison. When I get back after a long day in the parks, being able to stretch out on the sofa and watch TV while my daughter is asleep in another room is far more "magical" then being crammed into a little hotel room onsite. Even the more expensive Disney hotels, like AKL, have pretty small rooms. Yes, looking out and seeing animals is really neat, but I'm just as happy to drive over there one day and see the animals from the observation areas.

Staying off-site doesn't mean you can't enjoy the on-site properties. We still visit several Disney resorts for meals and shopping. And we love knowing that we are paying less for one week off-site than the people staying there are spending for one nite!

Steve

 

[NomadFamily]

Wow..ths is great because it shows how everyone can enjoy WDW.....whether you stay on site or not. If staying on site is really important, you can do everything from All Stars to GF. I do agree that if you are not staying at a monorail hotel, from what I have heard and read, it is often faster to drive from place to place rather than taking the buses. And, with rental cars being in the $20 a day range, it is hard to beat it...especially after you factor in the cost of getting the shuttle service to and from the airport.

There really isn't any one solution that is better than another. It's all a matter of personal preference. People have VERY different travel preferences. I know that I am also NOT the kind of traveler who stays in "All Inclusive" resorts and I don't like cruise ship travel. Why? Because I like to get out and explore.....I like to eat in local restaurants......like to take in the surroundings.....meet the locals...etc.

I have friends who LOVE cruise ships, love the service, being catered to. I could care less if you butler my drink, pull out my chair, turn down my bed. I prefer a few cold beers in the fridge or a nice bottle of cabernet, some brie in the fridge and warm french bread...which is another nice point about kitchen appointed units...on site or off. And, like another poster said, I am NOT getting up at the crack of dawn on my vacation....LOL.....and if anybody is hungry early in the AM I want to point them in the direction of the cereal and milk in the fridge. This is another reason why we stay so long........so we can l o u n g e............

21 days and a wake up!

 

[Gillian]

Originally posted by sheila rose
It doesn't necessarily have to be WL I was just wanting something that had some space.

WL rooms are small! They are larger than the all-stars, but not much bigger than the moderates. They do have a balcony, which is nice when the little ones are napping, but it'll still be cozy with 5 people.

I've done both on-site & off-site. Our family is only 3 people, so we manage fine on-site. But a condo or house off-site with full kitchen & living room is fantastic too!

 

[disneysteve]

Originally posted by Gillian
WL rooms are small! They are larger than the all-stars, but not much bigger than the moderates. They do have a balcony, which is nice when the little ones are napping, but it'll still be cozy with 5 people.

I second that. A few years ago, we visited friends who were staying at the WL and we were surprised how tiny the rooms were. Considering the price, I expected more. And last November, we saw the rooms at AKL and they were equally small. If it were just my wife and I that would be more than sufficient. But when we are with our daughter, we like to have seperate rooms. Maybe one of these days Disney will build an all-suite hotel so they can attract those of us who want more space.

Steve

 

[NomadFamily]

Maybe one of these days Disney will build an all-suite hotel so they can attract those of us who want more space.

Now THERE is an idea!! I hope Disney is reading this. But, it can't cost $600 a night

 

[Skinsfan]

Definitely off-site! When my wife was a CM, we stayed on-site at the All-star resorts a few times. We stayed at a time-share, (Orange Lake Country Club), last May. It took some heavy-duty pleading, to convince her to stay off-site. We had a gorgeous 2-BR villa, complete with 2 bathrooms, whirlpool tub, full kitchen, laundry, etc. We absolutely loved it! Plenty of room, great place to spread out and relax, (the hot tub was really nice after walking in the parks all day). Not to mention the 7 pool complexes. The drive time from OLCC was actually closer to some of the park entrances than some of the WDW resorts. We'll never stay on-site again! We loved the amenities and convenience of staying at a condo, that we've booked another one for next spring, (Vistana Resort). It'll cost us less than $150.00 to stay for an entire week! In fact, from what I've read, Vistana Resorts are even closer than OLCC. You will, however, need a car. IMHO, you get a lot more bang for the buck, staying off-site. There's plenty of Disney "magic" at the parks. No matter what you decide, you'll still have a blast!

 

[NomadFamily]

We'll never stay on-site again! We loved the amenities and convenience of staying at a condo, that we've booked another one for next spring, (Vistana Resort). It'll cost us less than $150.00 to stay for an entire week!

How did you get this deal? Or, are you a timeshare member/owner?

 

[Lisa P.]

Another consideration... the bathroom! Hotel rooms and 1BR suites only offer one bathroom. Getting a family of 5 ready for the parks or changed into/out of swimsuits, using a single bathroom is tedious and timeconsuming. With a 2BR suite at most (though not all) suite hotels, all timeshares and private condos/villas... you will generally find 2 FULL bathrooms.

 

[Skinsfan]

Hi NomadFamily! We own an RCI. We got an exchange and paid a $139.00 transfer fee to stay at Vistana Resort. Last year, we did the same thing, to stay at OLCC. Hope this helps!

 

[newmousecateer]

DH and I stayed at CB 2 years ago. We are going back in Sept. with our DS, DIL and two grandkids. I agree, the grounds are beautiful, but they are just overpriced motel rooms to me. And to me, the magic is inside the parks.

So, we have a two bedroom condo for Sept. and it will cost us $88.00 a nite. We rented a van, and I think all of us will be much happier.

 

[i12go2wdw]

I am no expert only having been to WDW 3 times once at the Dolphin once at FT. Wilderness cabins and this last time at Tropical Palms but I vote for off site. Both FT. W and Tropical Palms were private cabins but at TP we had 2 bedrooms (FW 1) TP also had a loft that slept 2 kids, both had a full kitchen but TP was better equipped with pots, pans, dishes etc. The pool at TP was beautiful, well kept and had a restraunt (FW full of leaves, small and boreing). We got a good deal at FW at $149 a night, TP rack rate $79. I feel foolish that we ever stayed at FW and wish I had that money back. We still enjoy visiting the DW resorts and eating at some to the resort restraunts but for the extera money we can go more often and stay longer.

 

[djm99]

Comparing the prices on or offsite were just too much for my budget. I usually also do other things besides disney. To be honest i don't even like staying near disney (i enjoy the International Drive area personally. EVERYTHING is right in that area at normal reasonable prices. Stores on disney site are HIGHER than you could even imagine. My husband at I honeymooned in Disney (1997). My in-laws booked us at I believe an All stars resort (8 days 7 nights), booked our flights, and gave us $500 in disney money. We ended up renting a car and spent alot of time at restarants, stores, etc. near International Drive. Our honeymoon was nearly $2500. When we found out how much they spent we were SHOCKED!!!!!! Don't get me wrong we LOVED it!!!! But we would've been happy to have been at a residence inn or any suite off campus. Now my husband and I have one 3 year old and this is her second trip to DisneyWorld. On our trip in August 2003 I've already booked (8 days 7 nights)prepaid my hotel, and gotten 4 adults and 1 child ticket to disney and haven't spent $600 yet. So when we get to Disney budgeting isn't something i have to do.

 

[jjjbennett]

My fourth trip to disney is coming up in August. The first we stayed on site cramped in an All stars room with 2 kids. Now we have 4 kids and like to take my parents with us to make for a fun family time for the grandkids plus they give us some freedom to do things by ourselves or with the older kids. We have stayed at the HIFS w/o the grand parents and in 2 rooms at MOWC with the grandparents each was cheaper than the value resort at disney. This year we are trying a 3 bedroom villa at Cypress Pointe. The ability to vacation in a beautiful fun place have a super large villa with 3 bedrooms and 3 baths with full kitchen for all the snacking 4 kids need and still have the money to bring my parents is a whole lot more magic to me than being cramped in the allstars in 2 rooms. Yet the cost for our vacation is just about the same if all 8 of us stay in 2 rooms at the All stars (with bargain rates not even rack rate) or a 3bedroom villa a mile down the road. I keep waiting for disney to have some type of bargain that makes me want to stay onsite but the money difference in what you get on and offsite is incredible.

 

[chloesmommi]

The truth of the matter is that HIFS is closer to the parks than many on-site hotels. We stayed there last year, and from the hotel parking lot to MK parking lot, it was an 8-minute drive. In my opinion, unless you are staying at a monorail resort at $300 per night and up, you cannot get there any faster. Disney bus transportation is okay, but there are so many things to do in the Orlando area that a car is almost a necessity. We got a great deal at Orange Lake for this November, but next year we will definitely go back to HIFS.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Originally posted by newmousecateer
...So I took him up to my bedroom, and said "picture two full beds, and armoir, a table and two chairs, a seating bench, and over here this open area with sinks, here a toilet and over here a wooden pole that serves as your closet." He looked at me like I was nuts! ...

Hi, newmousecateer. No offense, but if you did that to me, I would also look at you like you were nuts!

Just my opinion, but I would vote for an on-site resort....but then again...I enjoy being immersed in the magic 24 hours a day!

You will likely get more pro off-site opinions in this forum, but you may likely get the opposite in other forums. In my opinion, it is really all about price. After all, if you are willing to spend big dollars, there are one, two, and three bedroom accommodations on-site.

I don't know how many would tow the line for off-site if the prices were equal, but I do know off-site has it's following.

Good luck with your decision....