Staying Off Site Worth It?

[meggiemouse]

So I'm trying to budget a trip to Disney in this summer and am looking at staying offsite. I've looked at airbnb and vrbo and have found a few places for about half the price as Disney resorts.

But we love staying on site. We've stayed at POP twice. We like the convenience. The parking/buses, the magic bands, the food courts. Would we miss these things too much? How much is parking per day now?

Basically I need someone to tell me staying offsite is okay and driving 3-5 miles is just as easy as the buses.

What are your experiences?

 

[BigredNole]

If you have a car, staying offsite is great. Don't kid yourself though. Staying in great places is 25-50% off the price of a Disney Value. However, you do have to factor in the parking price. I think it is $18. We have APs so parking is free. The other added benefit is much cheaper meals.

The other added benefit is MUCH faster travel times. My average bus travel time is nearly an hour each way. That is from walking to the bus stop, waiting for the bus, and then getting to the park. With a car, hop in and go. It is about 20-25 minutes total.

 

[anna samantha]

I stayed off site for the first time in a long time this October. I was surprised by how much time I saved driving to the parks instead of using the transportation. I thought it would be a toss up when you figure for traffic and trams etc. but it wasn't! I really saved a huge amount of time especially when park and resort hopping. I'm an AP holder so parking was free which means I also saved a fair amount of money!
The thing is, I don't think I will do it again. It turns out that for me, waiting for the ferry or bus or monorail and riding 'home' with the weary masses is part of the magic. There was something strange about leaving the bubble. It really took me out of the experience. I missed waking up before everyone to trudge to the food court for my morning coffee, seeing all the expectant happy faces of people here for the first time, watching the Disney saavy discus their daily strategies...It's the whole world I love, not just the parks. It did open my eyes to the fact that since I always have my car I should totally use it for resort hopping and Disney Springs but at the end of the night, count me in as one of the happy, exhausted, achy people cramming onto a crowded bus to stay inside the magic.

 

[100AcreWood]

If it's just for two people, I think staying onsite is convenient. However, for families it's nice to have the extra room (and a nicer place!). We love Windsor Hills. We just booked our third stay there and for us we save 1/2 of what we would spend if we stayed onsite. So it more than covers the parking fee each day. I also like having a kitchen, having easy access to groceries so I can make quick breakfasts in the mornings. I like having the extra room and 2 bathrooms. I personally hate waiting for the buses. I think being able to get to your car and goes is much easier. However, I do miss the convenience of going straight to the Magic Kingdom vs. going to the Ticket and Transportation Center. It's definitely a matter of weighing the pluses/minuses! Good luck deciding.

 

[Govols1997]

We stayed off site at Windsor Palms in October. We got a six bedroom home w private pool for $1500 for the week. Having all that space and a washer/dryer was amazing. Driving to the parks was so much easier than the previous year when we were onsite without a car. I'm not sure we'all do onsite again. And if we do, doubt we'll buses.

 

[BigredNole]

I will through this in as well. We did not miss morning EMH. When there was evening EMH and we were in the parks that late, we just planned EMH time for pin trading, looking at shops, snacking/eating, and people watching. You do not need to leave the park, you simply cannot ride rides.

 

[100AcreWood]

I will through this in as well. We did not miss morning EMH. When there was evening EMH and we were in the parks that late, we just planned EMH time for pin trading, looking at shops, snacking/eating, and people watching. You do not need to leave the park, you simply cannot ride rides.

I was unaware of that! Good to know. We could definitely hang out and enjoy pin trading without the rides.

 

[TamaraQT]

I stayed off site for the first time in a long time this October. I was surprised by how much time I saved driving to the parks instead of using the transportation. I thought it would be a toss up when you figure for traffic and trams etc. but it wasn't! I really saved a huge amount of time especially when park and resort hopping. I'm an AP holder so parking was free which means I also saved a fair amount of money!
The thing is, I don't think I will do it again. It turns out that for me, waiting for the ferry or bus or monorail and riding 'home' with the weary masses is part of the magic. There was something strange about leaving the bubble. It really took me out of the experience. I missed waking up before everyone to trudge to the food court for my morning coffee, seeing all the expectant happy faces of people here for the first time, watching the Disney saavy discus their daily strategies...It's the whole world I love, not just the parks. It did open my eyes to the fact that since I always have my car I should totally use it for resort hopping and Disney Springs but at the end of the night, count me in as one of the happy, exhausted, achy people cramming onto a crowded bus to stay inside the magic.

Although I am an offsite person, I can relate and appreciate this viewpoint!! At the end of the day its about what makes YOUR vacation enjoyable. Personally I dont care for onsite and disney transportation. But I totally get it and understand that the things I may not like is what makes YOU feel like you are on vacation and thats what its all about. So if you LOVE the disney bubble then onsite is the way to go. If you want Disney and a little bit or more of Orlando/Kissimmee area dining and attractions then off-site is a good choice. Offsite is what my family prefers because we go to Orlando to do more than Disney and theme parks. One of our days now includes hitting a few outlets, and the American Girl Doll store in the Florida mall. Although I have many restaurants where I live, some chain restaurants such as Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, and a few others are far better in Orlando, than here at home. I think its because of the large volume of tourist that the food tastes fresher and better. But I also love Ohana and Chef Mickeys. So it all comes down to what makes YOUR vacation enjoyable. So if buses and being among tired achy people does it for you, then I think its great that you are ENJOYING every moment!!!! I prefer a timeshare resort over a hotel. I like my own living room, diningroom, kitchen, master bedroom, bathroom(s), and balcony. When I come back from the parks, I come back to a jacuzzi for this tired achy body instead of a small hotel room. But by no means am I going to insult someone who likes the opposite than I do. As long as you are ENJOYING yourself, thats what matters. We used to stay in Orlando for 7 days, then increased it to 10 days. Now thanks to finding timeshare rentals for less than $100/day, we have now increased our Orlando vacation to 15 days. We use 3 to 4 days for Disney and use the other days enjoying our timeshare resort and the surrounding areas. There is so much more than just the theme parks. But you have to discover what works for you and your family. But in my opinion off-site is worth it if you want more in your vacation than just Disney. If all you want is Disney, then stay on-site and don't venture out of the bubble.

 

[anna samantha]

Although I am an offsite person, I can relate and appreciate this viewpoint!! At the end of the day its about what makes YOUR vacation enjoyable. Personally I dont care for onsite and disney transportation. But I totally get it and understand that the things I may not like is what makes YOU feel like you are on vacation and thats what its all about. So if you LOVE the disney bubble then onsite is the way to go. If you want Disney and a little bit or more of Orlando/Kissimmee area dining and attractions then off-site is a good choice. Offsite is what my family prefers because we go to Orlando to do more than Disney and theme parks. One of our days now includes hitting a few outlets, and the American Girl Doll store in the Florida mall. Although I have many restaurants where I live, some chain restaurants such as Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, and a few others are far better in Orlando, than here at home. I think its because of the large volume of tourist that the food tastes fresher and better. But I also love Ohana and Chef Mickeys. So it all comes down to what makes YOUR vacation enjoyable. So if buses and being among tired achy people does it for you, then I think its great that you are ENJOYING every moment!!!! I prefer a timeshare resort over a hotel. I like my own living room, diningroom, kitchen, master bedroom, bathroom(s), and balcony. When I come back from the parks, I come back to a jacuzzi for this tired achy body instead of a small hotel room. But by no means am I going to insult someone who likes the opposite than I do. As long as you are ENJOYING yourself, thats what matters. We used to stay in Orlando for 7 days, then increased it to 10 days. Now thanks to finding timeshare rentals for less than $100/day, we have now increased our Orlando vacation to 15 days. We use 3 to 4 days for Disney and use the other days enjoying our timeshare resort and the surrounding areas. There is so much more than just the theme parks. But you have to discover what works for you and your family. But in my opinion off-site is worth it if you want more in your vacation than just Disney. If all you want is Disney, then stay on-site and don't venture out of the bubble.

I totally agree!! Because I live in Florida I'm usually only coming for a few days. That makes a huge difference. When I lived out of state I used to stay off site for a week to do Universal and explore Orlando then move onsite for our Disney days. I have to admit that moving halfway through was a bit of a pain and basically felt like losing a day but it was definitely what worked for us and became "our thing". We had one of our best times staying in a condo outside the parks so I would definitely recommend giving it a try!!

 

[BigredNole]

But I also love Ohana and Chef Mickeys.

I just made my ADRs for these 2 and they are the only table meals we will have at WDW. We stay offsite for much of the same reasons. I love Disney, but I love saving money as much as I can. When I can save $1,000-$2,000, the decision is easy.

 

[Klayfish]

Is staying off site worth it? A thousand times yes. I know I am in the vast minority, but we have no interest whatsoever in staying on site. Staying off site is fantastic. No need to wait for the buses, we can go where we want, when we want...without having to huddle into a crowded bus full of tired, sweaty, grumpy people. When we want downtime outside of the parks, we're not trapped in a hotel room with just a bed and maybe a small couch. We have a 3 or 4 bedroom house with multiple bathrooms (so we don't have to share with the kids), a separate living room, dining room. All the comforts of home. There's a community pool, which is always quite nice. We can pack, make, eat our own foods, which is very nice. For a long trip, we can do laundry...which while it's a "chore", unless you pack very heavy has to be done at some point...and frankly is so much easier than people think. We're not confined to the WDW bubble, we can visit gift shops, restaurants, etc...outside WDW with ease. The drive too/from WDW is so easy it's silly. 5-10 minutes tops, minimal traffic (if you know the right roads). Parking is $20 or $22/day, but we have AP so it's included and we don't pay. All this, and we pay $600-$750/week depending on where we stay. We LOVE staying off site, it's the only way to go for us. I have nothing at all against those who argue for staying on site, but just like they'd say that staying off site is a huge negative for them, staying on site would be a huge negative for us.

Saying "never" is a strong word, so I won't say we'd "never" consider staying on property, but the only way I can see doing it would be if it were 100% free, it was in a condo like suite and we got to bring our own car.

 

[BigredNole]

I am in the process of investigating bringing in a cooler to the parks for our lunches. I can get/make our lunch meat for the week for the cost of a single meal at a QS restaurant. We won't pack every meal, but a majority we will. The more I can save on trips means the more I can take trips. Would I rather spend $600 a week and take 3-4 trips staying in a multi-room condo/villa/house or spend $1,200 for Pop Century in a small studio and only take 1, maybe 2 trips?

The only benefit of staying on site now for me is morning EMH. That is no longer an important benefit because we avoid that park now. You can enjoy most things at evening EMH except getting on an attraction. You can do all of the resort activities except swim if you visit the resorts. Even then, swimming is not blocked from most resorts.

 

[jsmla]

I am in the process of investigating bringing in a cooler to the parks for our lunches. I can get/make our lunch meat for the week for the cost of a single meal at a QS restaurant. We won't pack every meal, but a majority we will. The more I can save on trips means the more I can take trips. Would I rather spend $600 a week and take 3-4 trips staying in a multi-room condo/villa/house or spend $1,200 for Pop Century in a small studio and only take 1, maybe 2 trips?

The only benefit of staying on site now for me is morning EMH. That is no longer an important benefit because we avoid that park now. You can enjoy most things at evening EMH except getting on an attraction. You can do all of the resort activities except swim if you visit the resorts. Even then, swimming is not blocked from most resorts.

This is how I feel as well. Staying offsite and limiting Disney Dining allows me to make twice as many trips each year. I do enjoy onsite (staying at Pop later this month) but not well enough to cut my days in the parks in half. I average 4-5 trips a year, usually one onsite and three off. When DH goes we camp at Ft Wilderness which gives me the best of both worlds

 

[GreatLakes]

I am about 50/50 on-site vs off-site. There are things I prefer about both. I like the convenience and immersive feeling of being on site but like the price and feeling of freedom off site. For me it depends on the totality of the vacation. Am I hitting just Disney or also non-Disney events? Am I spending all or only part of my vacation in the Orlando area?

I will say I won't stay off site without a rental car so if you do decide to stay off site I would recommend you get one.

 

[Klayfish]

I am in the process of investigating bringing in a cooler to the parks for our lunches. I can get/make our lunch meat for the week for the cost of a single meal at a QS restaurant. We won't pack every meal, but a majority we will. The more I can save on trips means the more I can take trips. Would I rather spend $600 a week and take 3-4 trips staying in a multi-room condo/villa/house or spend $1,200 for Pop Century in a small studio and only take 1, maybe 2 trips?

The only benefit of staying on site now for me is morning EMH. That is no longer an important benefit because we avoid that park now. You can enjoy most things at evening EMH except getting on an attraction. You can do all of the resort activities except swim if you visit the resorts. Even then, swimming is not blocked from most resorts.

We pack pretty much every meal. My wife and I are pretty strict on nutrition, especially my wife (even on vacation). We also don't want to spend a fortune on food. We go to the local Publix grocery store and buy food just like we would at home. We typically eat breakfast in the rental house, so we never pack that. But lunch and dinner are almost always packed. It's pretty uncommon for us to be at the parks so long that we need to pack both meals, so it's usually just one. For example, if we get to the parks at 10:00am, we usually are done by 5 or 6pm, so we only pack lunch. Or sometimes we go to the parks at 2pm, so we only pack dinner. We pack everything...main course, veggies, snacks for the kids, sodas for us (diet, caffeine free of course...), dessert for the kids, etc... A lot of people seem to think we spend hours cooking and cleaning so that we can do that. In reality, it's not even close. Maybe 20 minutes per day, which we do while we're having breakfast and morning coffee anyway. For dinner, we usually cook in bulk once, then bring leftovers. Lunches take a matter of minutes to pack, and the kids help. I didn't actually tally it, but on our recent 17 day trip, I'll bet we spent a total of $400 in groceries, to feed a family of 5. Maybe it was a few bucks more, could have been a few bucks less...I know our initial "stock up" trip to the store when we got there was around $225, and from there we just supplemented things...plus we had a good amount of food to bring home, so it didn't go to waste.

It's also easy to transport to the parks. We have a very large soft sided cooler bags. It's the size of a plastic cooler on wheels, but much less cumbersome. We pack it strategically, using ice packs or hot Thermos containers, depending on need (sometimes we do both...hot on one side, cold on the other). Yes, it's fairly heavy when we first pack it. However, I only have to carry it from the car to the tram for the ride to the front gate. From there, we have a small umbrella stroller that we bring. We sit the cooler in the umbrella stroller, and the handles for the cooler bag fit nicely over the stroller handles to keep it from falling out of the seat. We then push the stroller into the park, easy as can be. Normally, we'll park the stroller near where we plan to eat lunch/dinner, leave it there and come back when we're ready to eat.

That's not to say we never eat out. My wife and I very rarely do, maybe twice on a two week trip, but we'll buy snacks and desserts for the kids from time to time. We're very happy bringing our own food in and it works great.

 

[BigredNole]

We sit the cooler in the umbrella stroller, and the handles for the cooler bag fit nicely over the stroller handles to keep it from falling out of the seat. We then push the stroller into the park, easy as can be. Normally, we'll park the stroller near where we plan to eat lunch/dinner, leave it there and come back when we're ready to eat.

Never thought of using a stroller as the "wagon" for a small cooler. That makes it crazy easy to take and not rent a locker everywhere by AK. They say you can't bring a wagon or wheeled coolers, but nothing about a stroller and a cooler. Going this route would keep me from having to carry around my backpack as well. I need to investigate this more.

 

[Klayfish]

Correct. Wagons aren't allowed. Wheeled coolers aren't supposed to be allowed, though we did try that route. We got in a few times before security said no. Honestly, we found it much more of a pain in the rear than what we do now, so we ditched it anyway. We have a cooler like this....http://www.webstaurantstore.com/cho...lated-vinyl-food-pan-carrier/124FCARRVNL.html (it's not this exact one, but it's very much like it, this is what popped up when I Googled "soft sided cooler"). Our stroller is this exact one... http://www.target.com/p/cosco-umbrella-stroller-shark/-/A-14603159

Sit the cooler lengthwise in the stroller...i.e. the longer dimensions (in this case, the 23" length) of the cooler go front to back in the seat of the stroller...the front of the cooler will actually hang off the edge of the seat a little. The left strap of the cooler fits nicely over the left handle of the stroller and the right strap over the right handle. This secures it in place, so it cannot fall out (unless you completely tip the stroller over on purpose). It's insanely easy to push around. The canopy of the stroller makes a great shade to help keep the sun from beating on it if you've got cold things inside.

We've gotten many, many pleasantly surprised looks from CMs and security, all of whom think it's a great idea.

 

[Jennasis]

We own DVC and very much enjoyed our offsite stay last month. We bought enough points for what we wanted and decided that when we need a quick long weekend "fix" we will do a cash offsite stay. We have our own car and enjoy exploring Orlando and the surrounding area.

 

[lindsmom]

We are off site people - three visits off site, yet I did one onsite just a weekend with my niece. I would do on-site again, but only with Hubs and I in a king room. That would be lovely, worth the buses to have a designated driver, and regular housekeeping, etc.

However with the 2 children there is no question that off site is our preference. Personally, I need my space and there is NO WAY I get my space in a single room LOL! We have stayed at Marriott condos off site with 2 bedrooms, and we are staying at WBC in April - again, 2 bedroom. I like tucking in the children then watching some tv and having an adult beverage without worrying about waking the kids. Also, I'm funny about the "bubble" in that I appreciate leaving the Disney bubble and then re - entering the next day (or so). However, I understand the appeal and perhaps with just my hubby and I, we would feel differently.

For me, the only argument FOR onsite is EMH. I have already bought magic bands for our trip - $40 total. Enh. We have to pay parking. $140 (approx) for the week. Oh well. We are on vacation, and it depends on what is more important to you, and for everyone that answer is different.

 

[BigredNole]

Just for comparison sake, a 2BR at WBC is about $1,200 (give or take) + $140 for parking totaling $1,350 (estimate). A 2BR on Disney property is $700 a night even on the cheapest Disney prices. Going through a DVC owner, you are looking at $3,300 on the cheapest possible rate: SSR, Adventure season, $12 per point. Even if you got it for $10 per point it would be $2,800. The price difference alone pays for your tickets.