First time on WDW property.

[real mad hatter]

Good Morning,Altho it was eight years ago that we planned our first trip to Florida,deciding on a two centre 14 day vacation,one week onsite,one week offsite.I think a lot of people planning their first Florida vacation notice how cheaper it is to stay either on I/Drive,or if it's a big family,rent a villa.But I've often been asked do the benefits of staying onsite make it worth while.Personally myself I think they do.We have always stayed at Mods,and to be honest,there not much more expensive than the values,but the deluxe resorts do jump up on price from Mods,I suppose you only get what you pay for,as all things in life.Then again people will have a budget on how much they are willing to spend,and how long for.So before you start planning your WDW vacation,what are the three,in order,top things you take into consideration?:wave:

 

[copcarguyp71]

1 - Layout/size of resort
2 - Price of room balanced against what it offers
3 - Distance of travel from resort to the parks

Distance from our room to the method of transportation would be the first thing that comes to mind. After that price comes into play when balanced against amenities at the resort and then finally we look at the travel times to all the parks using whatever transportation methods are available at the resort.

I am wrestling with these right now as we are planning our next trip in October and I keep flip-flopping. On one hand the Caribbean Beach Resort fits our budget well and seems very nice (we have never stayed there) the only other mod we stayed at was POFQ and it was nice enough but we made the mistake of starting off with Deluxe resorts six years ago on our first trip with our DD and enjoy the perks and atmosphere they allow. we are looking at maybe going back to the BC for the easy entry into Epcot and the great pool.

I guess for us there is no easy answer and I am thinking on booking the CBR but maybe upgrading to the BC if we can work it into the budget. We have another month to decide as I want to book just inside of the 180 day window for ADR's so I will be interested to see others responses to this topic.

 

[Hakunamatata]

In what order do they need to be in?

 

[real mad hatter]

First most important

In what order do they need to be in?

Like first the most important then second and third.

 

[phlydude]

I look at the resort as the place to sleep, shower and change clothes in. Every resort has a better pool than the pool I belong to at home (not always as clean but theming, deck and chairs and proximity to getting changed and food are same or better). Would I like to spend time at a moderate or deluxe? Sure, but the Values are just fine for me and my wife (no kids now or future). Besides, boarding my 3 dogs costs almost as much ($900) as it does for me to go on vacation!

For me, staying on property outweighs the savings of staying off site because I generally only go when I am getting a free dining plan and the cost of parking if not a Disney guest at the theme parks more that covers the extra money I would be spending by staying at a Marriott property or similar.

I-Drive is good for those that want to bounce around and do other things because of the shopping options and the bus routes on the road.

We tried staying at a place on 192 and left after the 1st night...it just didn't compare to what we could get at Disney for the same type accommodations.

 

[shmmrname]

We stay on-site for a few reasons:

Convenience. We drive from Chicago, so it's a 17-19 hour trip. While having the car there is a nice feature, we tend to be more relaxed using the bus/boat/monorail systems in place.

Trust. We have expectations for WDW resorts, and we feel very comfortable with their ability to meet or exceed them. For us, it's just a 'given', one less thing to worry about in our plans.

EMH. We love the night-time EMH's - and usually utilize them whenever they are offered.

Immergence. While I too agree, in many ways resorts/hotels are just a necessary-evil you have to pay to get a place to sleep in-between doing the daily things you REALLY want to do. I have to say, it's nice not ever stepping out of the 'world'. Even if you don't use all the features/ammenities that make it special, you can usually still gleen some of the 'magic' just from walking through the resort on your way to the parks daily.




I'm not saying off-site won't be great, just simply that we value these couple of issues too much to retry it.

 

[jayhawkmickey]

Seeing as you're from Scotland lets just assume you will be flying into Orlando. The magical Express takes you straight from the airport to your hotel and you never have to touch your luggage. There have been times we have been on our way to the resort 20 min after our plane landed. Back home we cant even get our bags in that time. The emersion is very nice when you stay in the world. Even the little things like power poles and billboards take away some of the magic for me personally so it's nice to stay in a place where all of that is invisable. I've found that the service at a Disney hotel is better than outside, we stayed at POR and POP, and the hotel staff was outstanding and the resort was better than anything we could have afforded outside. The convienence of using the keys to the world for food, gifts and everything is very nice, as is being able to use our dining plan at the hotel. Short rides to the parks by bus, no driving or parking hastles, quick trips home and then when it's all done Magical Express back to the airport with no bag worries. We love staying onsite because we can just let go and not worry about anything except relaxing untill we get home to the real world.

 

[MWC]

I've stayed at a hotel near DTD when just my wife and I went and it was ok. The last 2 trips i've taken my family and we rented a house.

1) I'm looking at value for my money. The house we rented for 7 nights and paid $900 both times the week of Thanksgiving. That's far better value than any of the Disney resorts can offer

2) space. The house had 4 bedrooms, a full kitchen, Pool, and game room so we all had space to relax when not at the parks. Plus with the bedrooms there was time for my wife and I to have some private time with each other.

3) Convienance. This is where renting a house is not as great. We did have to get our bags, and rent a car, and drive ourselves around. It can help save money though as we were able to go to a local store and buy food and snacks easily. We could also east off site.

Overall it was much less expensive and more comfortable staying offsite but it did lack the feel of Disney 24/7 that you would get a a resort.

 

[real mad hatter]

Spot On.

Seeing as you're from Scotland lets just assume you will be flying into Orlando. The magical Express takes you straight from the airport to your hotel and you never have to touch your luggage. There have been times we have been on our way to the resort 20 min after our plane landed. Back home we cant even get our bags in that time. The emersion is very nice when you stay in the world. Even the little things like power poles and billboards take away some of the magic for me personally so it's nice to stay in a place where all of that is invisable. I've found that the service at a Disney hotel is better than outside, we stayed at POR and POP, and the hotel staff was outstanding and the resort was better than anything we could have afforded outside. The convienence of using the keys to the world for food, gifts and everything is very nice, as is being able to use our dining plan at the hotel. Short rides to the parks by bus, no driving or parking hastles, quick trips home and then when it's all done Magical Express back to the airport with no bag worries. We love staying onsite because we can just let go and not worry about anything except relaxing untill we get home to the real world.

Yep,Agree with what you say,spot on,just one thing,Magical Express only operates from MCO and sadly not Sandford.I think Virgin airlines use MCO,but lots of other flights from UK fly into Sandford.:wave:

 

[SMS55]

I look at the resort as the place to sleep, shower and change clothes in.

That's why I always stay at the value resorts. I live in South Florida, so unless it's summer, I'm not even using the pool.

 

[Philhar-Fanatic]

Are the rooms clean, are the busses efficient, and what is the biggest bang for our bucK? (ex: how do the room rates match up with whatever specials are going at the time)

 

[EvilQueen-T]

have you looked at the hilton by dtd, the swan or the dolphin? they still offer extra magic hours but have different rates than the traditional disney resorts. it could possibly keep you from having a split stay. if you're not concerned with extra magic hours than an off site stay is much less expensive.

 

[wdwcandice]

I always choose the same resort, as of late. I always stay at POFQ.

My criteria is all about value....

I love the Deluxe resorts but for the money, I don't gain anything over the moderates by staying at the Deluxe resorts. Based on my own personal vacation style.

I want a clean, comfortable room. I don't need concierge....sit down restaurants, dry cleaning or room services...I just want a comfortable room at an affordable price.

I want to stay on site to take advantage of the bus system. Many people complain about the Disney Transportation, but I love it. I'm on vacation...I don't want to have to think. I like not having to deal with driving and getting out of a parking lot at night or into one in the morning.

I love POFQ because of it's size....I love the Disney emmersion all day and then come "home" to courtyards, gardens and fountains at night and yet plenty of eye candy for the kids, or not....if traveling without them.

I didn't really answer your question as far as the "top three" go...but I guess my always choosing the same resort is based on what my perception of value is.

 

[jayhawkmickey]

Yep,Agree with what you say,spot on,just one thing,Magical Express only operates from MCO and sadly not Sandford.I think Virgin airlines use MCO,but lots of other flights from UK fly into Sandford.:wave:

I had no idea. We've only flown one airline when we go down so I just assumed the other side of the airport had the rest of the international flights, I didn't know ME only served MCO. Disney should bring Magical Express there with all the international visitors comming in you would think it would help increse the numbers of visitors staying onsite. Sorry, and thanks for the info. Have a great trip.:wave:

 

[phlydude]

Isn't Sanford used mainly for the major discount value airlines and charter flights by travel companies?
In either case, Magical Express wouldn't have agreements with them (check the Magical Express airline partners to verify)

 

[MarkandAmy]

Last summer we stayed off-site and rented a house for a two week stay. Whlie the house afforded us more room (there were 6 of us) everyone agreed that is just wasn't the same as staying on property.

That being said, we first look at room size. We don't need a lot of room, but found that the little bit of extra space afforded by a Mod was perfect. The kids loved ASM, but maneuvering around the room was challenging when four of us had to get ready early in the morning. Next, we focus on crowds. This comes from experience. I've even gone so far as to call a few different WDW Resorts to ask how crowded they expect it to be. It may seem like a minor detail, but after waiting 2+ hours for a bus back to our hotel at 10:30 pm with two very tired kids, I'll pay a little more for a less crowded resort. Lastly, we take a look at restaurant/dining options. Again, this comes from experience. It is really nice to be able to have an early breakfast or a late dinner at the resort rather than having to make an extra trip somewhere else just to eat. We always make our dining reservations for a few select meals, but having the daily option is very important for us.

One thing that we have found unimportant are the extra ammenities. We're usually so busy in the parks that we rarely have time to enjoy the pools, spas, and other "stuff" offered by the various resorts. Someday, my DW and I will take the time to really immerse ourselves in all that a resort has to offer, but while we have the kids we're always going to be more focused on spending as much time as possible in the parks.:sohappy: