Would you rather stay at a mid to upper level Marriott off-site, or a Value?

[amg35]

Can you share your thoughts on a very friendly debate I'm having with a family member? Would you rather stay at an off-property Marriott of higher quality than a Disney Value resort, or at a Value?

Does length of stay make a difference? One night vs. 10 nights? This is all hypothetical, so let's assume cost difference is negligible.

Thanks!

VP

Neither, I'll save until I can stay at the Beach Club.

 

[eliza61]

I'm the opposite of Pepe. If I have to do a value I'm staying home.
The values are too small, I hate food courts and don't like walking right out my door to a outside hallway.

So IMO why spend the money to be in a place I hate. Disney magic does not make the room bigger.

The one and only time we did one the beds were twins. So imagine the hippos from Fantasia trying to squeeze onto a twin.

That being said, if it was only for one night, I could survive

 

[spiceycat]

like them both - and really depends on which Marriott - Ritz Carlton or Renassiance or marriott vacation club - then maybe Marriott - although definitely love Pop or AoA. - now if you are talking All Stars then marriott (if one of the above)

 

[sjw4870]

I would stay onsite or at home. I would take the worst located room at any value over a suite in a Marriott off-site.

 

[nkereina]

I stay at Marriotts every time I travel for work, and am always happy with them. Very consistent in quality. However, at WDW, I would much rather stay anywhere on site than the nicest of resorts off site. Part of a WDW vacation is the all inclusive type of trip you can have - transportation, no driving/parking, sending purchases back to your room, dining plan, etc. Makes our trips easier and its part of the experience for us.

 

[texasroni75]

Value resort. As we have small children, the value resorts "look and feel" still appeal to us. Also, we drive to WDW (17 hours each way), so we want to be totally immersed in Disney from the moment we arrive at our hotel until the minute we leave. And the farther apart our trips, the MORE I want to stay on-site when we do go. In all the years we've been going to WDW, I've been pleased with the overall cleanliness, value, and packages that are available to us when staying on-site. And unless we're camping, I don't want to cook on my vacations, so I don't need a larger space/kitchen in our room. I can see how off-site works better for others though - especially those with either very small families or very large families.

 

[Mommy2Corinne]

I'd pick off site over a value. I'm probably going to sound like a snob, but I won't stay at a value, we don't like the double beds.

This. I won't stay at a value. I'd rather wait until I could afford a Deluxe to go to Disney though than stay offsite unless the offsite was the Ritz or the Waldorf Astoria or something comparable. High end hotels are part of the total vacation experience for us. (Although I don't consider the Disney Deluxes to be technically "high end" and we still love them because of the theming.)

 

[glammadiva]

Value and its POP for me.

 

[1000HappyWishes]

I'll stay at any Disney Resort that I can get. But I think it depends on how you vacation and how you travel. I like to be within Disney's magic and can easily find benefits that are right for me that justify the price I pay. For others, the benefits of staying offsite appeal to them. I will not be staying offsite if I go to WDW.

 

[DCbride]

This is our dilemma every time we go- moderate vs off Marriott. We do Marriott Rewards plus we visit 3x a year for a week or more each trip. We just stayed 7 days at LM room at AoA and DH said never again. Values are ok for a day or two transition time but we don't enjoy the room long term. So, comparing Marriott (not a cheap one like by LBV) but a nicer Marriott over Value..,,Marriott would win.

 

[LSchrow]

c) skip the trip entirely. go back when we can stay WDW deluxe or DVC

we have had similar discussions:
- what if you won a vacation at an offsite hotel?
most of our family & friends said the same as i did: use it only if not going to WDW, else give it away.
- what if you won a vacation, staying at a WDW value?
more said they would take this option. quite a few (including ourselves), would only go if we could pay for an upgrade to deluxe or DVC. else, we would again, give it away.

there are certain criteria that makes a WDW trip a vacation for us:
- entertainment (parks, mini-golf, community hall, beautiful strolls, etc) & dining options within walking distance
- views from our balcony (we dislike views of parking lots, streets, and/or sterile buildings)
- quiet pools, quiet nooks around the resort
- beautiful architecture, interesting decor (especially when there is a story behind the pieces)
- friendliness of staff

privacy and roominess matter also

 

[souris]

Value.. No question about it! We spend little time in our room. I find them quirky, cheesy, interesting! I love not having to drive or worry about a car rental and take the bus. I find the rides relaxing.. Even when standing on a packed bus (I'm weird!). In my real non-disney life I drive all the time, it's nice to not have that responsibility! Mind you, it would be a difficult choice to make if it were ASSports during Cheer Week. We had a terrible experience there.. Yes it was noisy, the food court full.. But we had four room changes! Long story.. Hehehe.. So a value over Marriott except for one!

 

[richmo]

Lots of differing opinions here...no surprise.

I usually don't look at it as a Marriott-like resort vs. Disney value or anything like that. I look at it more from a number of nights and space point of view. For example, I can put my family in a very comfortable townhouse or condo in a place like Windsor Hills for a week as opposed to 2 or 3 nights in a cramped Disney Deluxe. The Deluxe does have some advantages and I won't deny the additional "magic", but, to me, it isn't worth that tradeoff. I'll take the additional time every time.

Of course, that is what works for my family. With two teenagers of different genders, the type of room we can find at Disney has been greatly limited. We can't put them in the same bed, so when we've stayed, we've been pretty much stuck with a bunk room at WL or AKL or two adjoining rooms (we did this at CBR one time when they had a nice deal a few year ago).

Another determining factor, for me, is how long I'm going to stay. If just a few nights, the smaller room (either onsite or offsite) is fine, but as the number of nights increase, somehow the room manages to shrink. That's when the townhouse/condo really comes in handy.

Finally, I guess you need to look at how much time you spend in the room or at the resort. If you're in the park most of the day and use the resort mostly for sleeping, I would think staying onsite would be a much lower priority than if you want to enjoy the resort. If you spend a good amount of time at the resort and want to immerse yourself in it, then I think you can make a much better case for staying onsite.

 

[HM]

It depends. I've done both. If it's a timeshare-sized place with resort amenities not just a Courtyard by Marriott (for example), I'm choosing the Marriott.

 

[KonaKaiTom]

I've never stayed in Value, I have stayed in several Deluxes and several moderates as indicated in my signature. I had a conference a year ago and I did a split stay with 4 days at the Buena Vista Palace and Spa and 6 days at the GF. While the BVP was not Disney "themed." It was a nice, upscale hotel. It was also directly across the street from DTD, so I bought myself a 10 day park pass as part of my trip and walked across the street to DTD to take the official buses. BVP has a bus that goes to the parks, but they drop you off in the parking lots, not at the gates. For the rides back from parks, I would either jump on a DTD bus or a Saratoga Springs bus, which was also a short walk away. BTW, BVP was $99 per night.

Tom

 

[tarak]

Value, if I booked a family suite at AOA. We're a family of six, so we need the space. We've done connecting rooms and a one BR suite at AKV. I vast
Y prefer the suite. But if I couldn't get a family suite, I'd stay offsite.

 

[mommykds]

We have done both. You can find positives to both (Mariott, earn points, free breakfast) Value (on site, immersed in Disney 24/7, easy transport) as well as negatives.

I'd always rather be on site just since it's easier to travel around the property, park hop, & we like to have Disney everywhere when we visit. However for me the determining factor would be which one can I stay in longer (longer trips are always better!) Also which is better for our budget at that time. For us, going to Disney is the most important thing, not so much where we stay...if it meant going or not going we'd always choose going regardless of on site or off.

 

[jperrot1]

I can't recommend a value resort for most. Value resorts take too many amenities away in my opinion. For example, no towels supplied at the pools, and no shelter/benches at the bus stops. It will rain in the summer, and it will be hot in the summer (yet no protection at the bus stops). I believe these two items are basics that should be provided at any disney resort, yet they are not at the value resorts.

I can recommend moderate and up at disney for most. Just my opinion.

To answer the question of OP, I wouldn't stay off property, or at value. I would wait until I saved enough to stay at a deluxe resort and would sacrifice longer stay for club level upgrade. But there are so many different opinions on this subject matter. People can post page after page. "To each their own" is so true on this subject.

 

[happyann79]

Depends on the amenities at the Marriott. I usually like to stay on property though.

 

[CraftyMommy]

Some people refuse to stay at anything less than a Deluxe or a Moderate. Well, I'm an on-site snob and I refuse to go to WDW if I can't stay on site. That means more to me than the category.

I've stayed Deluxe and Value. When the budget will allow a Deluxe then I'll go for it. If I can't afford a Deluxe I have no problem staying at a Value. Pop Century and Wilderness Lodge are my 2 favorite Disney Resorts for very different reasons.

I just don't get the whole "values don't have towels at their pools" thing. Who cares where your towel comes from? When we stay at Pop we always call for extra towels and they bring us however many we need. We keep a stack of extra towels on the closet shelf and use them for the pool. Is it that big of a deal if you don't get your towel poolside?