What's the best way to get a group from an offsite hotel to the Parks?

[MemoryMakers2669]

I am helping a Girl Scout troop plan a trip for next summer. The leader is looking at Offsite hotels, as they are certainly cheaper, however most of them said a group has to get themselves to the parks (Mears) or if they don't have that restriction...their shuttle schedule sucks!! For example they have one shuttle to Epcot at 9:30, 10:45, 12:00. 1:15, etc. I haven't found one yet.......and all are "Good Neighbor" hotels.........that will take you directly to Hollywood or Animal Kingdom. Or that has a decent park schedule.

My opinion is, stay onsite!

But I need to offer up the best offsite option. Does anyone have any recommendations for hotels offsite that offer great park shuttles?

 

[maxiesmom]

I honestly don't think there is an off-site resort with better service than what you have posted above. The DownTown Disney resorts probably have the best off-site bus service, but they will cost you the same, if not more, than a Disney Value resort.

I'm guessing they would be flying down? If so, make sure the troop knows they would also have to pay for a shuttle from the airport to whatever hotel they choose, if they stay off-site.

What would the troop think about camping at Fort Wilderness? You can have a lot of people on each lot so the cost would be relatively low, and you would still get the bonus of Disney transportation.

 

[MemoryMakers2669]

Transportation to Orlando is still up in the air. We are in the stages of figuring out the total cost per scout/leader/chaparone. It's the same price to put 4 people in a Value or 5 people in a POR room. The overall trip cost doesn't go up much at all by staying onsite. I think she sees the free breakfast and thinks it's the best way to go, but if the transportation isn't going to be easy, it's going to make this trip very hard....especially in the summer!

 

[Lewisc]

Offsite shuttles have limited schedules. Some hotel websites specifically state their theme park shuttles either can't be used by groups or groups need to make special arrangements. What would you do if the offsite shuttle only has room for half your group.

I'd contact Mears and find out what it will cost to get a van (or bus depending on the number of people in your group) to take you from your offsite hotel to the theme parks.

Are you getting to Orlando via bus transportation? Get a price on using that bus for your Orlando transportation.

edited to add link to Mears

http://mearstransportation.com/pdf/Rates.pdf $410 R/T for a 55 passenger bus for Orlando area transfers. I'm sure there are other companies which offer charter bus service.

 

[DCTooTall]

You know.... Another very big question to ask is....


How many kids are you talking about in this troop?

And what is the adult/kid ratio going to be?



Depending upon the group size, you could also look at possibly renting timeshare condos and/or offsite vacation homes. Instead of looking at 4 people per hotel room, you could be at 8 or 10people per room... plus you'd gain a kitchen. The extra capacity could help lower the cost per person for the place the stay, which in turn could help make room in the budget for dedicated transportation.

It could also help with the chaperone situation since it would be easier to place an adult in each room.

 

[goofy4tink]

Off-site resorts have shuttles that park at the TTC for access to both DHS and AK. That's just the way it is. There may be some that don't but many do.
I guess you are going to have to weigh the value of a cheaper hotel vs an onsite one and then deal with the 'getting to the parks' issues. This in one reason that Disney can charge what they charge for their rooms...you get Disney 'magic' 24/7, you get direct transport to the parks, you get EMHs.

If the leaders do decide on an off-site resort, I would look into renting minivans for the duration. Depending on the size of the troop, you may be able to get away with two of them. But, then again, it may be cheaper to just stay at a value resort onsite. It's all about weighing your options.

I know that when our school band program went to WDW a year or so ago, they had to contract with private transportation since they stayed off-site. Yes, the group was larger than a scout troop. But, they had the same needs....moving kids from resort to parks.