is it worth staying on property

[JIMINYCR]

That’s why:
A) we’d never go on a Disney cruise…no rides (it’s a tease) lol and
B) shopping at the old Disney stores when we couldn’t afford to go…an even BIGGER TEASE lol

A.... We did a cruise/ park combo one year and at the end of the trip (although the cruise was nice) I told DW, I missed out on a # of park days,.
B.... YESSSSS. I know a large part of my budget on a trip will be spending at the stores in WDW. Our Disney store in our mall closed up years ago and its saved us lots of money because I couldn't stay out of the place. Just strolling through gave me a Disney high that was satisfying when we didn't have a trip planned for a couple of years.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

You will pay more in WDW than near WDW.

Not necessarily. I mean, you can save money staying offsite, and offsite you might get more hotel for the money, but there are plenty of $$$ offsite options, the Marriott JW comes to mind.

As to OP's question, When I visit, I often do a mix of offsite and onsite. With a short visit, a split stay probably doesn't make sense for you, but I almost always do splits.

Offsite, as noted above, you can often get more room for the money. One option Ilike is to spend 1 (arrival) night at one of the Flamingo Crossings hotels. I save $100+, sometimes several hundred, and there's a nice new Target over that way (pick up water/other drinks/produce/snacks) and some good quick serve places to eat. (Lime eatery is a favorite!) Just about all the hotels over that way are new and very clean. Several of the options also offer big suite rooms, and it can be really nice to have a big fridge, and we don't even cook!

But...they are not quite as fun as the WDW hotels, and not as convenient to the parks as some of the WDW deluxe hotels. You also need to think about transportation/parking fees. One thing I like about the WDW hotels are the fun pools. Most offsite places have boring pools.

At WDW, time is $. The extra half hour every morning that onsite guests get isn't huge, but it is something. The extra PM hours that the deluxe hotels get can be a fun plus if you will be at WDW on a Monday or Wednesday and can manage the late hours.

WDW's onsite food though has become pretty marginal. A big plus of some offsite time is being able to get better food at a lower price. For a while we used to always eat at WDW's TS, but they have really gone downhill. Last summer we ate at several WDW buffets and they were overpriced and mostly terrible quality. The buffets are now an absurd $60 per person!

WDW also lacks good produce. The fresh fruit options are very marginal. It is very hard to find a berry anywhere on property. Vegetables beyond mediocre salads are also hard to find. At most TS, the veggie is no more than a garnish. WDW is also big on covering everything with things like "cheddar spread," "spicy aioli," "zesty sauce", and ranch sauce. Reminds me of a school cafeteria trying to disguise mystery meat! blech! (those came directly off WDW's menus, btw)

Now it is worth adding that we usually stay onsite when visiting Universal, if visiting there is in your future. If you had asked about Universal's hotels, then absolutely they are worthwhile.

 

[graphite1326]

is it worth staying on disney property if you are only doing 1-2 parks plus disney springs, we come to florida in january for a week and stay off property this vacation we just did we only did one park plus disney springs, i haven't been to disney since the 1990s when i was a teenageer its just my husband and I. next year we plan on doing 2 parks plus disney springs.
is it worth it to stay on property for week if only doing 2 parks or would our money be better spent going to more than 2 parks?

I figured it out recently for a trip we are taking in October. I was going to use my sister's time share and then buy tickets. BUT it depends if you are just doing a disney only trip. In that case by the time you buy tickets only (it seems they charge more if its not a package deal for tickets), rent a car to get there, and pay to park it actually cost more to stay off property. However, if you plan on doing other things I would stay off property.

 

[NickPytlinski]

You only live once.
staying on property far out weighs staying off property.
we have done both several times.

even if it just gives you 'time' , this is the biggest perk. you are on vacation after all, who wants to travel in traffic

 

[AkiraRaptor]

Last time we stayed off site was in the late 80s/early 90s. We had drove down to WDW. The car broke down at the hotel in Orlando, and we lost at least a day+ in the parks because I had to get the car fixed and it was in a shop.

Never again. If we had stayed on property, we could have been in the parks while the car was being worked on. This is way before ride shares and etc., so a taxi would have been the only way to get to the parks back then. The cheap hotel didn't have a bus, and we couldn't really afford the taxis on top of the other costs were incurring.

We've stayed on property ever since and never looked back.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

I figured it out recently for a trip we are taking in October. I was going to use my sister's time share and then buy tickets. BUT it depends if you are just doing a disney only trip. In that case by the time you buy tickets only (it seems they charge more if its not a package deal for tickets), rent a car to get there, and pay to park it actually cost more to stay off property. However, if you plan on doing other things I would stay off property.

In the case of having a car and parking, cost is perhaps not the only factor to consider.

There is a trade-off of having to drive back and forth, but also the advantage of time and freedom. It can be faster to drive to the parks over taking a WDW bus, especially leaving the parks at busy times.

Having a car can also be helpful in some situations, like easily getting to a pharmacy or shopping. (Like if you ever forgot to pack meds or something important).

In the past, it made sense to buy one Annual Pass to get the perks of the AP- extra hotel discount, free parking, 10-20% off most TS dining, 10% off most merch. Mind, the current discounts aren't usually enough to = a savings at WDW (Universal is a bit better).

Just for fun, here's an approximation for a 7night stay in late March: cost of AP $1642.
vs.
Cost of 6day park hopper $988, 6-days parking $180, savings off a WDW hotel room at ASM $275 (or $504 at AoA suite), leaves about $199 difference.
Savings off a character meal for 4pple (all over age 9) about $30 per meal, or 7 meals to break-even point (6.63meals). Though the AP also gives 10% off most merchandise. So a family of 4 could probably come out slightly ahead getting 1 AP if they planned to get 6-day hoppers, eat 1TS meal each day, and buy a little merchandise.

 

[Jrb1979]

Staying on property is worth it if Disney is the only thing you're doing that week. For my family we do a Disney park but also do either SeaWorld, Busch Gardens and Gatorland as well.