On site or off site at WDW?

Question

PS Majorly considering Doulbletree by Downtown Disney.....

going 2008....
during childrens school year

Answer 1

Staying onsite also gives you a ton of benefits that you can't get offsite. Here are a few of the reasons I would stay onsite:

1). Better transportation- Especially if you are travelling with younger kids or older adults that need to rest in the middle of the day. Many offsite hotels, if they offer a shuttle (if they don't that is an additional cost you will have to pay) only run in the morning and in evening. You usually need to schedule the shuttle, etc. It can also be a long ride and take away a good portion of your time at the park. Onsite transportation is fast and easy, and it runs all day. Depending on where you would stay you have different transportation options, all resorts offer buses, some of them offer boat transportation and three offer a monorail for transportation.

2). You can take advantage of the Disney dining plan. This plan can save you 40% off of your food and you get to eat at the nicer restaurants that you may not eat at otherwise. It is a great deal.

3). I'm not sure when you are going, but Disney offers promotions for just about every date of the year. Unless you are going in the next few weeks, you should still be able to get a promotion for your dates. Currently they are offering free ticket upgrades, but they often offer free dining, especially during value season. So if you add up the saving there, you will more than likely be spending less, or possibly a little more than an offsite hotel, but you get all of the extra benefits and probably a lot more included.

4) The Disney touch- When you stay at Disney you know you are going to be staying at a nice place. I've gone past some of hotels that offer lower rates, and in some cases the same rates as Disney's hotels, and I think I would be afraid to go inside. Most of them aren't very clean, they can be a few miles away, etc. Also, you get the Disney service. If there is a problem, Disney will go above and beyond to try and fix the problem and do everything they can to make up for it. Even in cases where it isn't even their problem, they try their best to compensate in some way.

5). You can charge purchases to a room card so you don't have to bring your credit cards and cash with you everywhere you go.

6). Parking is free at your resort and you will also get free parking for the theme parks and some of the other places on property.

7). You packages can be delivered to your room. I know this doesn't sound like much now. But when you are in the parks, it is hot, you've been there all day, your tired and you have a ton of purchases to carry around, put on the bus, take back to the room (especially if you have kids that have purchases and/or diaper bags, strollers, etc.) it is nice to be able to make your purchase and then let Disney deliver it to your room.

8). Disney also offers Magical Express. Now, this isn't the best service and it does have some room for improvement, but it is also free. So that is another $100 or so dollars that you can save just for your transfer to and from the airport.
Staying onsite also gives you a ton of benefits that you can't get offsite. Here are a few of the reasons I would stay onsite:


These are just a few of the benefits. I think that if you actually figure out your costs, everything that is included, etc. you will probably find that an offsite hotel actually ends up being more and you don't get all of the benefits. Most people think they are saving a ton of money by staying offsite, but they don't figure in the costs for everything else, or consider other benefits. After everything is said and done, I can almost guarentee you can save money by staying onsite, and you know you have a good room and things like that.

Unless I am in Orlando for business, or have to attend a convention, meeting, etc. I always stay onsite, I even stay onsite when I am just there for business because I like the Disney hotels that much.


If you need any ideas or need some more help, please e-mail me. I go to Disney several times a year and I love to help.

Answer 2

When you visit WDW, the best way to go is to stay on-site. Disney offers pricing at their resorts that are comparable to anything off site, and by staying on site you get something the off site hotels can't offer, perks. Disney takes VERY good care of their resort guests, and if it costs a little extra it is well worth the price. Something as simple as the use of the Disney transportation system for example. The off site hotels offer shuttle service, but then you are on their schedule and not yours, and in some cases it costs extra. If you have a car do you want to drive to the parks every day, or catch a bus or use the monorail system right from your front door for free? And that is just the beginning. Extra magic hours for resort guests only, free airport transportation, the Disney dining plan, not to mention the famous Disney service. Stay on site, trust me you will never regret it.

If you are trying to decide which resort would be best for you I suggest a couple of sources. First, go right to the Disney website. The Disney website has a resort comparison tool that is pretty good and will help you to decide where you want to stay. Also, check out the disboards. The disboards is a website dedicated to going to WDW. You can get resort reviews, trip reports, dining reviews, tips and tricks for avoiding crowds and much more. Finally, go to the bookstore and pick up the Birnbaum's guide to WDW. There are a ton of guide books out there but that is the one that has worked best for us.

Answer 3

I would have to disagree and day offsite.
If you are wanting to see more than Disney, It would have to be somewhere off the 192.
Disney accommodation is great, but there is so more to Orlando than Mickey Mouse. There are great parks, shopping malls, museums and much more. The beaches are around a 45 minute drive and are well worth spending a day at.
Check out the site below if you wish to consider staying outwith. There is plenty of info including car hire, accommodation and Cheap Disney Tickets.
Renting a villa is not expensive if there is a few of you and you have all the privacy and freedom of home and there is no restrictions as you do have in hotels.
Have a great time

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Answer 4

I say on site for sure. We used to stay off site until this past March. It was the best choice we could have made. If Disney World is the thing your gonna do you don't have to rent a car. Disney takes you from airport to your resort hotel and back to the airport. They have there own transportation from park to park. Also if you stay on site you can enter early or stay later depending on the park. You have to know there schedule ahead of time. It is so much better staying on site then off site.

Answer 5

Staying on site, you can save a lot of money not having to rent a car, pay for parking, etc. You also have access to extra magic hours, which is great if you don't want to battle the very large crowds. Transportation to and from the airport is included, and if you stay at a value resort, like the All-Star resorts, the cost is managable. Have a great time, whatever you decide!

Answer 6

I have only stayed on Disney property, the advatanges that come with it our worth the additional cost. The dinning plan, the transportation and extra magic hours are great and we take advantage of them each trip. We started at the moderate, but the last few times stayed at the value resorts. We spend very little time in the room so we just do not benifit from the nicer hotels.

Answer 7

go on site. there are alot of benefits of staying on site. for example...you can stay later at all the theme parks,get fastpasses which save you alot of time but also allow you to see more,and why worry about a car when you get free transportation to and from every single park. if you are going the cost effective route, try one of the all star resorts. they run about $80 a night, and even though i have never stayed at one the 7 times i have been in WDW, ihave been to them and they are elaboratly themed and are really cool looking. you should make the most of your vacation, and staying off site is such a stress and is a major hastle. i really do reccomend an on-site hotel. have fun and think before you act.

Answer 8

Onsite ONLY.. most of the offsite hotels in Orlando are very old and you never know what your getting. A mold stained hotel room is the quickest way to a ruined vacation. Also the crime in Orlando is out of control. If you stay onsite at Disney you know you will get a clean room and you will feal A LOT safer.

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Answer 9

If you can swing it, I would stay at a Disney owned resort for the full Disney experience but having said that, the Doubletree is located in a great location and offers transportation to the parks and I can't say anything that disappointed me when I stayed there.

Answer 10

Yep, the Nick hotel is the best for kids. The rooms are decorated with Nickelodeon characters and the kids have a seperate bedroom from the parents. PRIVACY!!! The pool area is great because there are numerous things to do, including getting slimed. Unfortunately kids don't eat free since it became the Nick hotel. When it was just a Holiday Inn, the kids did eat free. They have nightly activities just for kids at an additional charge.. (no parents allowed) and the girls can get pampered in the hotel's spa. The rooms are pricey, but if you want your kids to have a good time, this is the place.