It is understandable that all those reasons listed are the reasons that it is necessary to stay onsite. Honestly, everyone has a different requirement and for you it just may not be desirable to stay offsite, but, less expensive, I have looked at it from every direction possible. Occasionally, POP has special rates that are close to compatible with outside, but, that is the exception and not the rule. Believe it or not, part of my vastly diversity filled life, I was, for a brief period of time a travel agent myself. Not long, because of my also magnificent timing we slipped into a major recession about the day after I started.
I took my family many times and stayed offsite and never spent more then $2K for everything. The trip from Vermont, and because my wife also couldn't ride very long we spent two nights on the road before arriving in Kissimmee. Tickets for four of us, sightseeing outside of WDW while exploring central, western and Eastern Florida and meals. In 2008 I took, at my expense, my two girls, their husbands, my three grandchildren, myself and my, at the time, girlfriend. I paid for all the 7 day tickets, the airfare from Vermont (round trip), a six bedroom villa 1 mile from the entrance to World Drive, with 5 full baths, living room/ dining room, computer supplied room, play room, full kitchen, huge Florida room with a full sized pool and Jacuzzi plus two rental cars besides my own that I had driven down. We spent four days in the parks, a day checking out the local attractions other then WDW and one day at Kennedy Space Center. Total cost $7800.00 That could not be done close to that onsite, even then.
But, so this doesn't sound like an argument, more just an informational situation. If anyone wants to stay onsite and has the money to do so, that is great. I don't put them down at all. Surprisingly, I do understand why people want to do that and how, to them it is important to be immersed completely, I just don't want to discourage people to feel that they cannot experience things like MK because of the costs to do that. And that a much cheaper alternative exists. Hotels, to us were really places to sleep and rest up before our next day enjoying the parks. All we had to have is a clean room with enough room to inhale and exhale. I will say, just as an observation, that I admire the fact that you were able to stay at POP and everything seemed roomy. I'm not even a little claustrophobic but, I found the room there terribly restrictive. At the time I stayed there they did not include a refrigerator in the room. It was an extra charge of $10.00 per night and the room was not designed for it so when they put it in the only space available the door would only open at a 45 degree angle.
Cost or not, I still prefer offsite because it offers me more flexibility to do what I want to do, eat at whatever place catches my fancy and not feel like I was grabbed at the heals, turned upside down and shaken until all my money falls out on Disney Property. That part is just me, others mileage probably varies. I certainly hope that what I said was not interpreted as thinking that you are doing it all wrong. Those are personal observations and things that I truly believe based on 35 years of travel experience to the great WDW.
We share lots of meals. It works for us two.
