Your preference and why?

[hkkatie]

So I've posted several times in the past saying that we are planning a 2 week trip to WDW/FL with about 7 park days. Well, hubby and I have been talking about it, and we think that it's just going to be too $$$ for us at this time. Therefore, we are most likely going to cut our trip down to about 10 days (incl. travel days), and 4 or maybe 5 park days. We are coming with our 4 kids, 15, 11, 5, 5. Originally we had planned on renting a house off-site, but close by, and renting a mini van for the two weeks. However, with the new plan/shorter trip, I've calculated that it would cost just about the same amount, give or take a couple hundred bucks, to rent two cheaper Disney hotel rooms (i.e. $130/night at All Star Movies ~$260/night for 2 rooms) or $280/night for a family suite at All Star Music, OR to rent a house off-site PLUS the rental car and rental insurance etc. (We are coming from overseas and will have to buy ALL the insurance.) If we stayed on-site, we would just stick with Disney transportation, and would not really venture out of the Disney "bubble." However if we stayed off-site and rented a mini van, we would be able to go explore other areas of FL.

Things to note: This is our first trip to FL/WDW; We know it's going to cost $$$ and would like to save money where we can; Probably will not make it for a return trip any time in the near future, as we currently live overseas and have to choose carefully how we spend our time in the US.


My Question: In this situation, what would be your preference and why? 1) Stay on-site and use Disney transportation; OR 2) Stay off-site and have a rental car for the duration.


Thanks for your input!

 

[WhispyPixie]

It comes down to your personal choice for your family. I would live in the "Disney Bubble"! Stay on site & use the transportation. You could also have amazon ship a box of personal snacks and food items from their pantry for your use should you want it and it could be waiting for you when you arrive.

 

[Aimee219]

I would definitely stay on site. Renting a house and paying for a rental and to park at the parks in my opinion is to much of a hassle. Staying on property and taking Disney transportation is way less stress for me

 

[Hannah S.]

I would also vote to stay on site. I love not having to worry about parking, driving, directions, etc. That's usually way more stress than what I'd like on a vacation. The buses take a little time, but help with the "Disney bubble" another user mentioned (love that!).

 

[plutosbuddie]

I would vote to stay onsite as well. However I would vote for trying to rent DVC points. I'm not sure when you're planning the trip to wdw but you can save a lot of money with renting DVC.

If you check out the dvc section they will give you more info and pricing!

Whatever you end up doing, have an amazing time with the mouse!!!

 

[DisneyFansInNYC]

I would stay onsite every time. There is so much to do around Disney even if you don't go to the parks. The Boardwalk at night has entertainment; you can watch movies at any of the hotels; you can go to a s'mores camp fire; explore the other hotels for meals; downtown Disney;

Did you look at AOA? They hold a family of 6. Enjoy your trip.

 

[AshleeH]

Personally, I love staying in the Disney bubble. We stayed offsite when I was growing up and I didn't know any different. I liked Disney - wasn't obsessed with it. My husband talked until he was blue in the face and I finally agreed that our first family vacation could be on property - I was hooked! It was like the entire world opened up to me and I fell in love.

As for park days - once you get about 5 days in, it's very little to continue upgrading to get a few more park days. I would price it out, but it would be worth it (to us) to have at least 7 days in the parks. 5 would never be enough for my family.

 

[hkkatie]

I would stay onsite every time. There is so much to do around Disney even if you don't go to the parks. The Boardwalk at night has entertainment; you can watch movies at any of the hotels; you can go to a s'mores camp fire; explore the other hotels for meals; downtown Disney;

Did you look at AOA? They hold a family of 6. Enjoy your trip.

I did look at AOA, but it was about $100 more per night than the other options.

 

[hkkatie]

I think you all are starting to sway me to stay on site. Truthfully, I would LOVE to stay on site, it's my dh that I have to convince. He is not really a theme park guy, and he's not really a Disney lover, so the fact that I got him to agree to this trip is pretty amazing, lol.

 

[Carla1183]

What time of year? If its during a value time you could get a 2 bedroom at Wyndham Bonnet Creek for 10 nights for $1300 with Vacation Upgrades (Bedroom for mom/dad, bedroom for the teens, 5 year olds on living room pull out. Plus full kitchen, laundry, and resort facilities). Plus $400ish for the van, $100 for park parking, you're at $1800 vs $2800 starting point for 280/night on property.
There are pros and cons to both, but unless I'm way off on your rental cost, there is savings to be had.

 

[hkkatie]

We are planning mid-August 2018.

 

[Oneanne]

I'm also a stay-in-the-bubble person and would always recommend on-site for a first trip and doubly so for an August trip. When we were there in August there were thunder storms almost every afternoon, so we just headed back to the hotel for a break/nap until the weather cleared... being close and easily able to go back and forth was really important.

 

[BWallaceKY]

If you stay on site you also get extra magic hours. For our family that seems to make ALL THE DIFFERENCE! My kids always get on and off a bunch of rides before parks open to others. I refuse to stay off site because of this. Also, I HATE theme parks with a passion and was really not excited about our first Disney trip 7 years ago. Disney is not like any other place I have been. We love it, so maybe your husband will have a similar experience? Have fun planning!

 

[mikedoyleblogger]

A first trip to WDW is overwhelming in ways you won't even understand fully until you get there. I definitely would not piggyback a first trip to WDW with a first trip to explore Florida. If you think four or five park days will be enough, I think you're already severely underestimating the size and scope of WDW. Essentially, you're visiting a theme-park resort the size (almost exactly) of San Francisco. Stay on site. Add to your park days. And use Disney transportation. Especially with the size of your family, it will be an annoyance to have to be limited to the schedules, destinations, capacity, and travel times of a third-party off-site bus shuttle.

 

[Gehrig1B]

You will find that adding more park days will cost very little, the major expense when adding days for a family of 6 is food. Food inside the parks is quite expensive. This is where staying within the Disney bubble can really help.

If you get a DVC property with small kitchenette you can easily move back and forth, park to resort for naps/swims/lunch and save a lot of money by not eating all your meals in the park. You can use a service like Garden Grocer to deliver grocery items to your resort and they can be there upon your arrival. Easy to eat breakfast in the room, come back in the afternoon for sandwiches, chips, etc., even an occasional meal at night as well.

 

[floozy]

I would opt for staying on site. We've just finalised our booking offsite, and if it wasn't for the fact we have kids that sleep early and we wanted space we would have definitely stayed onsite. So many advantages - transportation, early morning hours, home for afternoon naps... The list goes on

 

[hkkatie]

A first trip to WDW is overwhelming in ways you won't even understand fully until you get there. I definitely would not piggyback a first trip to WDW with a first trip to explore Florida. If you think four or five park days will be enough, I think you're already severely underestimating the size and scope of WDW. Essentially, you're visiting a theme-park resort the size (almost exactly) of San Francisco. Stay on site. Add to your park days. And use Disney transportation. Especially with the size of your family, it will be an annoyance to have to be limited to the schedules, destinations, capacity, and travel times of a third-party off-site bus shuttle.

Oh, I know 4 or 5 park days will not be enough, but it's all we can fit in time-wise. It will most likely be a 10 day trip, but I'm not counting travel days, so that cuts it down to 8 days. We will not do the parks on Sunday for sure, so that makes 7 days. And knowing my family, we will need/want a couple days off to sleep in, relax, go to the pool, visit other resorts, etc, which is how we settled on 5 park days. I know it's not enough, and I wish we could stay longer, but that's what we've got for this trip.

 

[MudQueen22]

How far away do you live? Have you considered driving?
It cost us less than $600 round trip to drive (likely more like $500) and that's one night each way in a hotel and our travel food.
And we're more comfortable in our own minivan than in an airplane.

 

[loves to dive]

I would also recommend staying on site, given how little time you have you probably aren't going to be visiting much else around the area. I would also caution about renting points that rarely are you able to cancel once you have booked. For some people this is not an issue but it sounds like you have already changed your plans at least once.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

How far away do you live? Have you considered driving?
It cost us less than $600 round trip to drive (likely more like $500) and that's one night each way in a hotel and our travel food.
And we're more comfortable in our own minivan than in an airplane.

That's a good point though I think time is also a huge factor thus as you mentioned the question would be how far do they live away.

I'm in the middle of the country and it would take 2 days of driving just to make it there (18hrs driving time). That means 2 days of driving back so that's 4 days total. Plus that's time out of the vacation or time spent using vacation days for work.

OR a 2 1/2hr-ish non-stop flight. Right now I would estimate that for my Sep 2017 trip (basing off of the August dates available right now) for SWA it would run right about $400 RT per person non-stop. The cons of driving would outweigh the costs of flying for me.

But it is something, depending on the distance, the OP could consider though they would need to include rental car costs even if staying on-site (assuming they don't want to drive their own vehicle).