Does offsite save money for a disney-only family?

[abe_bb]

Hey all!

We are going in early september (sometime between the 7th and the 16th, 4-7 days in that timeframe). The wife and I have always taken our daughter to Riverside, but with a new little addition that came last year, and with our budget strapped a bit, we are trying to decide between pop century and going Off-site this year.

Our big thing in Florida is we are only going to Disneyworld, and we don't like to rent a car. So any off-site we stayed at would need to have a shuttle to at least the transportation center. If it doesn't offer an airport shuttle, that's okay - we will buy a ride

Does anyone have any good recomendations? Or should we not even consider offsite a choice, seeing as we ONLY do disney things?

Thanks!

 

[davinakb]

If you're not going to do a car, you're better off getting the best deal you can get at a value resort. From what I understand of most off-site transportation the buses are occasional (only morning and evening/night, so no midday naps) and sometimes cost $.

How big a place are you wanting off-site? pool requirements? In what price range? If your off-site deal is good enough, you may want to consider a Priceline car rental.

We often do all WDW and stay off property (though we always have a car), usually in a condo or townhome (just love the extra space, baths, laundry, full kitchen). We figure even a deal at someplace like SpringHill Suites MV gives us internet, breakfast, a little extra room to spread out. It's close to the Disney outlet for cheap souvenirs. Except for MK, our car is just as fast as the buses to the parks, resorts, DTD; and we prefer driving ourselves anyway. FWIW.

 

[KristieLC]

We went last Dec and researched staying off as compared to staying on at POP as well. Our off site location was a time share with a deal that we wouldn't get at a hotel, and cost wise, either vacation would have been about the same amount of money. i think it was about $100 difference. ( Yes, we did have to commit to a 45 minute conversation about buying a time share but that doesn't bother us). We determined the based on room/food (dining plan if on and approx out of pocket if off), parking, since we had our car, and tickets. We decided that since they were comparable we would stay on and get the dining plan because of convenience. A bit after we booked, Disney released one of their promotions and we wound up saving an additional $500, so then it was cheaper than staying off site. We also used our Disney card to pay, so got the 6 months of no interest no payments, which made it even more affordable to us.

 

[abe_bb]

Now there is something we didn't think of - townhouses and such. hehe.

Price range we are looking at would be under $800 for a week - depending on what they offer (free breakfast, discount tickets, etc) maybe a bit more, but can't say without looking.

Size isn't that important as long as it is clean with decent reviews. Pool isn't that important - we would like a place with a "Quiet" pool lol but we know that's near impossible. When it comes down to it the pool, as long as it is warm, clean and open until about midnight, we don't care.

other amenities: Shuttle, on-site restaraunt would be preferred, or at least within walking distance of a sit-down, and that's about it.

We aren't worried about naps - we learned how to deal with a baby that wants to nap when our eldest was, well, a baby down there

Townhouses however - that intrigues us. Do they have on and off season pricing too usually? Having the kitchen especially would save us a ton, and we don't mind cooking on vacation

 

[jonabyte]

The only thing I found saving money on staying offsite was the cost of food.
If you stay on site, you need to purchase most meals there, which I find can be very expensive, esp. when some/most hotels have complimentary breakfast.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Staying offsite is cheaper than a Disney Value Resort.

However, as you won't have a car you're really at the mercy of wherever you stay to get you to and from the parks.

My advice - price up an offsite with a car against a Disney Value Resort without. See which is cheaper as you then have the convenience of Disney transportation versus your own car. Don't forget to schedule in the daily parking fees and fuel with you hire vehicle costs

 

[Auroragirl]

We stayed off site our last Disney Vacation.... and ended up spending $100 less than if we were to stay on property at a Value Resort (including everything). We kick ourselves everytime we think about that. I would have been more than happy to pay $100 more and stay on site! But the others in our group decided that $100 was more than they wanted to pay for that. :brick:
Thats why our next trip, we aren't going with anyone else!!!! :lol:

 

[SAV]

The great debate rears it's head...I can say using many of the discounts available(entertainment book, codes on mousesavers), I can definitely save a bunch of money off-site versus on-site. Even factoring in the rental car I come out way ahead. It may take some work, but it can be done. If you plan enough ahead and use your Disney Visa card, you can rack up enough points to defer some of the costs that way too. We usually use it to pay for one of the Kids park passes.

But the big question is how your family travels and what you want/expect from a trip. Our family isn't that big into eating, so the dining plan isn't an incentive to us to stay on-site. I am able to get a 1 bedroom suite at a Marriott for $60 a night. You couldn't touch a room like that at a Disney resort. I want to have my own vehicle so I can run to any store if I need to/when I need to. But to get that car, I reserve the best deal I can find and then I go an check to see if there are new codes or if I can get it cheaper. I usually whittle off a good chunk by the time we go. And we do the parks commando style, so we don't need frequent runs back and forth, so the hotel busses, if we needed to or chose to use them, would be fine for us. Again...personal preference on how your family travels. Having the car free's us up to stock up on our own food and bring it into the parks. Saves a TON of money that way.

 

[TheAmazingBobbo]

When you include the costs of renting a car, parking, gas, etc., it would generally be around the same cost to stay at a value resort as it would to stay offsite, and the amenities are much better, as those who posted above have said.

I have stayed twice on-resort (3rd time in August '09) and once offsite, and I will never stay off-site again unless I win a trip or something like that. Staying on-resort is definitely worth the little bit of extra cost you could run into for extra things (food being a little more expensive, whatever)

 

[Master Yoda]

I have done WDW staying off site and on site many times and every time I stay off site I am reminded of why I rarely do it.

The upsides to staying off site....

More bang for the buck. As a general rule you are going to get more room for the money and can usually get a free breakfast out of the deal as well.

The downside to staying off site.....

You never really know what you are going to get. With Disney you can expect a certain level of service and if they do not live up to it they will go out of their way to make it right. Renting a car is pretty much a must when you are off property. Off site transportation is notoriously bad and most of the time they will drop you off at the TTC and you will need to take Disney transportation to get to your final destination. This can make a simple trip to a park take an hour plus. Then there are the nickel and dime costs you will occur such as parking at $12 per day and your cab from the airport to your hotel and then back again. When you start adding those to the price of your room the big savings begin to erode quite quickly. Then there are the other perks such as package delivery, dining plan, and extra magic hours that go bye bye as well.

There is also the intangible. When I have stayed off property I have always felt like I was leaving my vacation to go home. While this is a relief for some people it borders on torture for me. When I drive under that arch I enter a place where the real world can't get to me and that solace is a big part of my Disney experience.

Here is another thought as well. Right now you will be given rack rates at the Disney resorts. You are traveling during a very slow time of year that is famous for room discounts and programs such as free dining. In all probability you will either get your room at a discount or will be eating on property for free.

Drop me a line and I will be happy to go over some options with you and get you some prices. I do not think we will have a problem keeping you on property and sticking to your budget.

 

[modmomee]

We have stayed both on and off...
In my opinion staying on site: The magic never disappears.
Off site...as soon as you go into that other hotel...you do not get the same kind of Customer Service and caring as in Disney.

The transportation issue alone is a NIGHT MARE!

I even hate to leave at the end of a vacation. We always laugh and say "We're not in Disney anymore" when we are at restaurants and such.

I mean where can you go, leave all of your belongings on a stoller unattended BUT DISNEY!

Stay in the park..no matter how much it costs!:ROFLOL:

 

[SAV]

See, I am the opposite of many of the posters in this thread. I find it much more convenient to have my own car and not rely on Disney or Hotel transportation. The hotel I stay at is wonderful and they take care of me very well. It's not like any other hotel chains in the world won't do anything to "make it right". They all want to make you happy. I haven't ever had to pay a $12 parking fee, so I guess I am staying at the right place.

After days in the parks, I want to get away from the "magic"(gosh, I love when people whip that word out". Disney is a hectic vacation. So it's nice to get away from that too.

And to me, a larger room(a 1 bedroom suite) is much more desirable than a standard "value" room. I can put the kids to bed in the bedroom and still spend time getting everything ready for the next day without disturbing them. Not to mention the Dining plan to us wouldn't be worth it since my kids aren't real big eaters anyways.

Again, it is all based on how you and your family travel.

 

[slappy magoo]

this isn't your first kid, and you know how you roll better than I would know how you roll. We went last December, mid-month, with our 5-month old Slapperina. We're DVC and stayed at Saratoga. We had our car with us & for the most part drived everywhere. When Slapperina was done for the day, we didn't want to wait for a bus, deal with the crowds, people dripping ice cream on our stroller, all that. Crowds were light enough that we rarely parked far (tho it meant buses didn't always run as frequently), and the car afforded us more privacy.

But that's us. Based on what you want your budget to be, I can't imagine you getting a room at a decent hotel & renting a car & parking & gas without doing some serious web scouring. And you don't want a car anyway, you want shuttles. To that end alone, I would say stay onsite. Even though buses at Values can get crowded, they'll still, by and large, run more frequently than offsite shuttles, and with a baby and a toddler or young child in tow, time might be an issue.

If I might add a wrinkle to your options, often Disney Vacation Club members who can't go any time soon will rent out their points (not on this forum but on others). Sometimes for as low as 8 bucks a point, though 10-12 is more likely. And the point values for rooms is significantly less Sun-Thur than it is Fri & Sat. Depending on seasons & rental costs, you may be able to get into a studio at OKW, maybe even SSR or BWV standard view, for 5 nights (Sun-Thur) for less than 400 bucks. This will get you on-site, in nicer accomodations than a Value, at great savings. If you manage to get into BWV, you're also talking relative walking distance to two of the parks, which can be a blessing if you need to up & bolt tout suite. You'll have little kitchenettes so you could possibly save some money keeping breakfast cereal & milk, or lunch meats & bread in the room, and some snacks. And there's always pizza delivery to your room at night, which is more than pizza delivery in an off-site room, but still cheaper than a sitdown meal in a restaurant. Just something to ponder.

 

[littlestar]

We are DVC members and we also own with Marriott Vacation Club. When we do stay off site, I like to stick with quality I can trust - and that usually means Marriott or Sheraton.

We do 3 or 4 trips a year to Orlando - onsite and offsite trips. We enjoy both types of trips. When we're offsite at our Marriotts, we like to go to Flippers Pizza (best homemade bread sticks you've ever put in your mouth), outlet shopping, and we still pop into the parks for a few hours 2 or 3 times (since we are annual pass holders).

If you don't want to try anything else Orlando has to offer besides Disney stuff, then I would probably stick with onsite resorts or maybe Wyndham Bonnet Creek (next to Carribean Beach) since it offers frequent shuttles to the parks. Sheraton Vistana Villages has shuttles, but I think there is a charge. Another suggestion would be the Marriott Village hotels (they have shuttles) and you can sometimes find good deals on Mousesavers.com for those Marriotts. Those rates have been coming up at $79 a night and includes free breakfast, transportation to the parks, and a $25 food credit to boot - that's an awesome deal. There are also several restaurants that are walkable from the Marriott Village.

I would also second renting DVC points. Sunday through Thursday point rentals in DVC studios are really quite affordable and way better than a value resort since you'll have a microwave, small sink, toaster, and refrigerator.

 

[Susan Savia]

We have always stayed offside. We have figured out the cost for staying offsite and compared it to onsite and we find our value is better spent, offsite. Our motel gives us a microwave/mini fridge, newspaper, free wireless internet access in our room and other amenities. We are just outside the parks entrance so its only a mile drive onto the parks. Our motel has the free shuttle but we like the freedom of having our car in case we want to stop for supplies on the way back to our room (water, snacks). For what we would pay for an 8 nights stay at a value, we can save $300 or more being offsite. We are only in our room for sleeping. The room doesn't need to have fancy furniture or decor. We dont need special dining, its way too much food and we enjoy the vast assortment of dining places offsite for far less money. We have annual passes so parking is free. We always go at rope drop to whatever park is chosen for the day and leave at dark. We like having the car there and no waiting on busses. We, too, only do Disney.

 

[lilclerk]

I would generally say off-site is more cost-efficient, but if you're not renting a car and will be relying on off-site shuttles, DEFINITELY stay on site. I know people complain about Disney buses here sometimes, but it will be nowhere near the waits for a shuttle.
Plus at that time of year, you could look into free dining and save some money there. Plus you'd have DME, magic hours, etc.

 

[hrcollectibles]

I would stay on property, as some have said the wait for Disney buses may be long but I don't think it would compare to the wait for a shuttle. And as far as I know some shuttles only go to and from the hotel on a limited basis. Where the Disney buses are a constant flow. Granted the Disney buses may run slow at times, but I look at it this way you are on vacation, relax the wait for the bus sure beats driving in the traffic.

 

[GatorGambit]

The transportation situation is easy if you're not driving there: rent a car. I would rent a car even if I was staying on property. The convenience of having a car to go anywhere you want, on- or off- property, whenever you want, and get there efficiently far outweighs the cost.

I rarely pay more than $150 a week for a car rental out of MCO. Priceline and rental car discounts are your friend here - I go with the least expensive national car rental company and get on my way.

I prefer staying on-property for the Disney full-immersion experience. I prefer an off-property resort (i.e. Gaylord Palms) if I'm looking for a great vacation and hotel experience. And if I just don't care and want to save big money, I prefer Hampton Inn over other hotel chains for free WiFi and breakfast, and fairly consistent service at any location I've ever stayed at.