Need some help planning a trip with friends

[JohnLocke]

Me and some friends are considering taking a trip to WDW in the next year. I've only been with my family, and we typically stay on property, but I realize that this may not be easiest to do because of tight budgets. I'm looking for any suggestions on off property trips and tips for ways to possibly stay on property for as cheap as possible. Also, how does parking work when staying off property? Would we have to pay each day or is there a long pass? Thanks for any help.

Also: additional info, it looks like there will be a total of 5 of us, with the possibility of adding 1 or 2 or subtracting 1.

 

[real mad hatter]

If there's five it might be worth going for a villa off site,just a thought.

 

[PUSH]

If there's five of you, values and moderates are out of the question (except for AoA). Depending on where you stay offsite, it may be just as cheap to stay onsite because you do have to pay parking everyday. We figured one trip if we'd stay offsite, it'd still only be a difference of about $10 a day.

 

[tractorm3]

if you guys can go during the offseason. I took a trip with 8 people who were all friends from college and we had a blast. I dont think you will save staying off property. You have the Magical express, meal plan, and buses. never need to worry about parking, rentals, getting to and from airport, and we love the meal plan. We take one cab ride when we first get there to walmart to pick up snacks and some water.

 

[Epcot-Rules]

We stayed here: http://www.fantasyworldresort.com/home.asp They are 3 bedroom town houses with washer and dryer, nice pool with a water slide and lazy river. The clubhouse and pool area were very nice with a pool bar, but the town house was a little run down. It is close to everything Disney and Uni. From what I remember it was surprisingly economical.

 

[mickey2008.1]

It is cheapest to get two rooms at a value, not a suite. AoA is very expensive for what it is. The other thing that you want to try and get is free dining, this will really help with the budget, because it is something you will not have to worry about, as it is already paid for, and with a group of 5 or so, it pays for itself. Meaning you pay room rack rates, but they will be well wiped out by the free dining. 20% off a room does not help, and your not going to stay a t a deluxe where 35-40% does help. Staying on property means no driving, no hassels of parking, and free transportation around all properties, EMH, and many other plusses. Also free transportation to and from the airport if you are flying.

 

[minniemickeyfan]

I'm going with some family next summer and we just booked two rooms at the Comfort Inn in Davenport at $47 night. Parking will be free w/ an annual pass. It's a new hotel and its pretty nice for being offsite-stayed there before. Onsite I'd look at two value rooms or you can put 5 in a room at Port Orleans if 1 is a child. I would just keep an eye on upcoming specials. Offsite vacation homes/condos could be an option too.

 

[luv]

I would look into condos off the WDW property, too.

 

[SAV]

If you have the "Entertainment" book, there are many hotels in the area that would be half off the rack rate. We did that at the Courtyard LBV in Vista Place and it was great. If they don't offer Free Dining at the time we're going, then we're going to do it again next trip.

And someone above mentioned paying for parking...if you split it 5 ways, it will be $3 per day you would have to pay for parking. Wouldn't be a deal breaker for me.

 

[Rob562]

One thing to keep in mind when staying off-site is that unless the place you are staying has a shuttle to the parks, your group can't be as flexible as you could be if you stayed at a Disney resort. If one or two people get tired and want to go back to the hotel, it means that either people have to leave before they wanted to, or tired people have to stay longer than they want to. If some want to sleep in, it means that either they can't, or others have to wait to go to the parks until later.

If you stay at a Disney hotel or an off-site hotel that has a shuttle, people can go back to the hotel whenever they want. Two rental cars make things more flexible, but of course cost twice as much to rent and parking fees.

This is one of those tough-to-quantify things when you start a strictly financial comparison between on- and off-site.

-Rob

 

[dreamfinder]

A whole lotta depends in the initial post.

Are any of the 5 willing to share a bed? Or sleep on the floor? Getting 5 beds on property won't be cheap, but if at least 2 are willing to share, you may be able to get away with two rooms at a value. Alternatively, possibly look into renting DVC points and getting a 2 bdrm villa.

Quick comparison of Jan 21-28 2013
5x$85 + 2x$99 = $623 + tax per room at All Stars. So 2 rooms would be $1246 before tax, something like $1400 w/tax. If the 5th person is an adult, add an extra $15 per night, or $105, totalling $1505.
Value 2 bdrm AKL villa is 185 points for a week, at the going rate of $13/pt via rental is $2,405. You may very well be able to find someone willing to rent for $11/pt, or $2,035.
The villa would give you 2 beds and 2 pull outs, (maybe 3 and 1) and at least 2 1/2 baths plus kitchen. The two value rooms gives you 4 beds, and 2 baths, with no kitchen. Not sure if you would be able to recoup the extra $550 through eating in room, as I'd figure on saving $8/person per day for breakfast, ~$300 over the week, more if you throw in some dinners or lunches.

Are you planning on packing really light? Fitting 5 people and 5 suitcases into most sedans would be a tight fit if you decided to stay off property and needed a rental, requiring 2 cars adds to the expense, especially if you add that 1 or 2 extra bodies.

Off site it will cost you $14 per day per car for parking, approx $25-40 per day for the rental, a few bucks for gas, figure an extra $300 easy over the span of a week. You very well may end up saving more than that if your offsite lodging has a kitchen so you could make breakfast, etc. One of the sites a PP mentioned would cost ~$100 per night for a 2 bedroom townhouse during the same time period. No idea if they have any pullouts, but you still would only have 2 beds. Assuming you can all fit in that 2 bdrm, $700 + $300 for car costs, you are at $1,000.

So some savings staying offsite, but other small things might add up. Now if you do happen to get a 25% discount at the value, which is within reason based off the last few years, the cost drops to $935, plus about $121 in tax, or $1056 for the 2 rooms, plus that extra $105 for the 5th adults, totalling $1161. Suddenly you are pretty close to the costs of the off property rental.

Alternatively, if you drop to 4 or go to 6/7, then free dining (if offered) may also make staying on property a bit more attractive. The $1500 for the two rooms would also then include 2 CS meals per person per day, which would be a big help to your budgeting.

 

[pixiesteno]

Let me throw this idea into the mix -- get a tent and stay at FWC! You can have up to ten people on a site. There are also local companies that rent out pop-up campers that sleep 8 and they will set it all up for you and take it down for check out. You would have the additonal cost of the rental on the camper but I think the two would go for around $100 a night but you can fit your group in. Just a thought.

 

[Figgy1]

Where are you coming from? Driving might be cheaper split 4 or 5 ways. If you have a car off property won't be as much of an issue. One must have is a designated driver for Epcot days. Good luck and have fun

 

[JohnLocke]

Thanks for the responses so far. Just to add a little more, there should be bed sharing, and we will probably be driving.

What's the normal time periods for Free Dining, because if we could get that, that would make things a lot easier. Also, I'm correct in assuming you can pay the difference for a different plan?

 

[dreamfinder]

Thanks for the responses so far. Just to add a little more, there should be bed sharing, and we will probably be driving.

What's the normal time periods for Free Dining, because if we could get that, that would make things a lot easier. Also, I'm correct in assuming you can pay the difference for a different plan?

Check out this chart -> http://www.mousesavers.com/historical-information-on-walt-disney-world-resort-discounts/ There really are no set in stone time periods for free dining. Especially if they ever hold good to their promise to reduce discounts. Some times its being offered as a bounce back, other times as a PIN, and still others where its to the general public. But odds are its going to be during slower periods (if at all).

 

[smw]

my advice would be renting dvc points. i just did this a few months ago with a group of 6 and it's honestly the way i'll book my trips in the future.

we stayed in a 2 bedroom at bay lake tower for about half the price, if i remember correctly. the place itself was excellent and the process was really simple. i used dvcrental.com. they've got a calculator in the site- just enter your dates and it'll give the cost of renting the points. i'll be doing it again september '13.

as for the dining plan, i'd pass. i always had it in the past when my parents were taking care of the trip, but now i find it a bit unnecessary. it's only slightly a bargain, and if you're like i am and you don't eat ridiculous amounts, it's hard to make it worth it.

 

[dreamfinder]

as for the dining plan, i'd pass. i always had it in the past when my parents were taking care of the trip, but now i find it a bit unnecessary. it's only slightly a bargain, and if you're like i am and you don't eat ridiculous amounts, it's hard to make it worth it.

Except in the OP's case, if he can get free dining for 4 adults in a room, almost guaranteed to be more cost effective than getting a room discount. But paying out of pocket, yes, almost never worth it.

 

[smw]

Except in the OP's case, if he can get free dining for 4 adults in a room, almost guaranteed to be more cost effective than getting a room discount. But paying out of pocket, yes, almost never worth it.

But I would say getting a room by renting dvc points and buying your own meals would still be more cost-effective, don't you think?

 

[dreamfinder]

But I would say getting a room by renting dvc points and buying your own meals would still be more cost-effective, don't you think?

Not necessarily. See my above numbers. I chose Jan 21-28 2013 as that was during cheap period for both rack rate and DVC points. 2 rack rate rooms at All Stars would run them about $1500. A 2br value villa at AKL (usually the cheapest # of points on property) would cost 185 points, or over $2000 if you find someone on the low end at $11 per point through a broker. They would need to find someone willing to rent points at $8 per point to be cost competitive. Not impossible, but usually precludes the use of a broker, and the legal protection they provide. So that would be 2 rack rate value rooms for the same cost as renting a 2br AKL villa. Now if they got free dining, that is a greater cost savings, as my numbers were using rack rate, not any discounts. They would literally be getting something for nothing in that case. If they were able to get a room discount of 25%, then they would need to find someone willing to rent points at $6 to match that. The DVC definitely gives them more bathrooms and 1 1/2 kitchens which is nice, but going for sheer cost savings, the value may win out in this case.

 

[minnielaw]

I agree that there are way too many variables that we don't know yet to make effective suggestions. What is your budget? Do you guys cook or eat all meals at the parks? Do you plan to be in the parks everyday?

I did a lot of price comparison with onsite vs. offsite before my last trip and found that staying offsite did not save me money. We were a party of four (two adults, two WDW adults..13 and 11) and we wanted the meal plan and 8 day Park Hoppers. Since I wasn't willing to stay in a dodgy motel or hotel, the room savings did not offset the cost of parking, no meal plan option and the EMH's.

However, I KNOW that you can save quite a bit of money by staying offsite if you are willing to compromise. Cheap hotel ($60 a night), cook your own meals or eat outside WDW, fewer park days, etc. Also consider that if you rent an offsite villa or condo and plan to cook all your meals, that means that you will have to leave the park and drive back to your villa at mealtime. This would get old very quickly for me....transportation to and from the parks takes about 30 minutes to an hour when you stay onsite...can't imagine how much longer that would be when staying offsite.

When I vacation I want to be totally immersed in the WDW bubble and I want a (relatively) hassle free vacation. For me, this means staying on property. We recently stayed at Boardwalk Villa's and the fact that I could walk to Epcot and DHS was worth the extra cost of the room (vs. offsite). Understand that on these boards you are generally speaking with the Disney obsessed and that the majority of us are going to advocate for onsite!