where to stay with 3 kids.

[hpymomof3]

We would love to stay at Windsor Hills but we are worried about the cancellation policy. We realize that it is necessary because they aren't big hotels that can easily rebook. Our main concern is if we had to cancel because of a family emergency (both of our parents have medical problems). We can't afford to lose that much money.

I'm looking for other places to stay that would offer enough beds for my 3 children to sleep in. We don't want to use a cot or pull out couch. We would also love a kitchen as that would help us to save money. We also want to stay within 10-20 minutes of the parks.

Any suggestions?

 

[AllesonWonderland]

You may want to bring it up with the owner of the WH townhouse/condo you're looking at. Ours seemed very accommodating and when I asked about cancellation said he had only had 1 family who had to cancel and all they lost was a $50 processing fee--if they rebooked their deposit would be reduced by $50. So, being upfront might help you out.

Good luck!

 

[5mins2disney]

That's a common question with any VRBO type of rental. The best answer is to buy yourself a trip insurance policy that will cover you in the event of this type of occurrence! You can buy them on the web at www.insuremytrip.com an online brokerage that links you to numerous trip insurance providers.

The problem with cancellation policies and VRBO rental homes, is, by the time someone is sick or unable to travel, it's not usually far off, it's within just a few weeks of arrival, or a week, at which point the home owner isn't going to be able to rent their home out to anyone else. The insurance policy therefore reimburses you while the homeowner doesn't lose any $$ either. Especially if you're concerned about someone's health, it's a great thing to give you peace of mind!

The $50 cancellation fee is typically assessed greater than 6-8 weeks out, and many people won't charge the guests if they can rebook the reservation, but this is all different per owners, and why take the chance anyhow when you can buy an inexpensive insurance policy to cover you for exactly this?

Our trip last fall was delayed by Hurricane Ernesto, we weren't sure if we were still going to be able to stay in our OWN home since we had guests coming a week later, depending on the length of the delay. We stood to lose out on possibly airfare and rental car....and if we had to book a place elsewhere, that would have cost us too! We got lucky and it all worked out, but it made us realize that for under $100 we could have been protected from this 100%!! On our May 05 trip i got pretty sick while on vacation, this too made us think about the possibility of the flu ruining our family vacation, you just never know.

- George

 

[MiaSRN62]

I don't know about the rental homes as I have no experience with them. But there are many nice timeshares very close to disney.
I own at the Vistana Resort which is a 10 min drive to the disney parks and maybe 15-20 to Sea World and Universal. If you pay as a cash guest (i.e. not a timeshare owner using scheduled week or points or an RCI exchanger), the cancellation policy is 72 hours prior to arrival with no penalty. So I think that is pretty stress-free. We've never, in 13 years of vacations to FL purchased trip insurance and fortunately we've never needed it, though I will say it's probably not a bad idea for peace of mind.
As an example, the Vistana offers 1 and 2 bedroom villas, full kitchen, balcony, 2 baths, washer and dryer and full resort amenities. There are several pools, sports and children's activities on the resort as well as several places to eat right on the resort.
Vistana isn't the only timeshare in the property, there are several in the disney area if you're interested. I see you are interested in Windsor Hills and probably more of a house setting, but just wanted to give you an option with the timeshares in the area.
Hope this helps.

 

[jeast]

How about onsite at the cabins at Fort Wilderness? They have a double or queen and a bunkbed in the bedroom, and a double murphy bed in the living room. The cabins also have a fully stocked kitchen.

Just a thought.