I cried today when I cancelled our onsite reservations...

[Sher]

I know I'm a sap--completely and thoroughly brainwashed by The Walt Disney Company--but I feel like I have been kicked out of the club. With the elimination of early entry, the perks of staying onsite just aren't enough to justify $109 at the All-Stars vs. $58 at the Hampton Inn. We save year round to be able to go to Disney at all, and need to spend our money wisely. My fear is that once we stay offsite once, we will never be able to justify the onsite rates again.

Anyways, there are 7 nights available at the All-Star Movies for 3/24-3/30. Hope whoever gets them has a great time.

Sher

 

[wdw4us2]

You shouldn't feel like a sap - you made the decision that was right for you and your family. After your stay at Hampton Inn, you should write/email Disney and let them know your feelings as to why you cancelled staying onsite. If more people would do that, maybe Disney would rethink EE! I'm sure you'll have a great time no matter where you stay!

 

[Disneycrazymom]

Maybe you will feel better to know that my DH travels A LOT for work and he chooses Hampton whenever one is available. He says they are very nice and breakfast is good. You'll have a great time, on or off site it is still Disney!

 

[js]

sher, don't feel bad! Really. How many people can say they are even going to WDW in March!
We went to BC in August (my mom took my family) but prior to that my family-dh, dd & ds was at WDW the Oct. before. I was just like you. First I had ressies at CBR but then kept thinking for the price I will be confined to one sm. room with the 2 kids at night and wanted a little more space. Transportation wasn't an issue since we were driving down.
It took me a good week to get the courage to cancel our CBR ressies and book HIFS. We loved it! Don't get me wrong, we LOVED BC. But we also loved having the extra 2 rooms, 2 tvs and free breakfast (and kids free dinners) at HIFS. I would book HIFS or another offsite, if worth the money, in a second. You could have 2 connecting rooms (extra bathroom, extra tv, kids sleep by themselves, etc) for the price you are paying for one All Star room. (BTW we have stayed there to but that wouldn't deter me from staying off site).
You made the right decision for your family and now you will have extra money to spend for your family and remember your kids are already lucky to be going to WDW, I am sure many of their friends (and yours) wouldn't care where they were staying as long as they were able to be at WDW Go and have fun and now that your decision is made, be happy with it and resume your planning

 

[Dallas_Lady]

Originally posted by Sher
--completely and thoroughly brainwashed by The Walt Disney Company--

I love this line! I think that is the heart of it all. I was trying to explain to my husband why we simply HAD to stay at a Disney hotel for twice as much money (with half the amenities) as an offsite resort. I kept going on and on about "Magic." Well, he pointed out to me that we will be going to WDW, something I haven't done in 5 years, and that our vacation wil be enjoyable regardless of who owns the hotel we stay at.

My first (and only) trip to Disney was offsite. I had a wonderful time. My second trip to Disney will most likely be offsite too. Try not to feel bad, just think of the money you will be saving and the benefits you will get!

 

[chrissyk]

Would it be possible to get a cheaper rate for the All Stars? I don't think that you'll get $58/night, but you might get it a heck of a lot closer to that price. I must have called CRO over a dozen times in a row, with tons of different codes, but ultimately I got a discount of 35% off rack rate for the GF in May If it means a lot to you to stay in the park, I'd say keep trying to call CRO to get a better rate and don't give up!

 

[Mickeyluver37]

My first (and only) trip to Disney was offsite. I had a wonderful time. My second trip to Disney will most likely be offsite too. Try not to feel bad, just think of the money you will be saving and the benefits you will get!

Your siggy says Fairfield Inn. Was this the one at Universal? We have 6 nights booked at CBR, and 3 at Universal Fairfield. The Universal package is all paid for, and there are huge penalties for cancelling. Right now, I'm really regretting it, and wishing we just stayed at CBR the whole 9 nights. So, any good thoughts? How is the continental breakfast? Is this going to be a huge dissapointment after a week at Disney? I've asked about this hotel on both the Universal and Orlando boards, and apparently no one has ever stayed there, LOL.

 

[Bill From PA]

I'd still look for a discount code for your time frame. Last year we booked the first week in March at AllStar for $107, then found a code here for $99 at PO/Riverside. I don't like losing EE either, but we've been off-site and to us it makes a huge difference never having to leave 'The World', always feeling the Disney atmosphere, being able to pop back to the resort for a shower or a dip in the pool without a major commute. If booking a WDW resort meant I couldn't go at all, I'd go off-site, but I'd try to economize elswhere first.


Bill From PA

 

[disneyholic family]

i really know what you mean about the magic and all that...
but just think about all the money you'll be saving this way......
just be sure you spend it to have a good time while you're on vacation.....
like a lunch at a restaurant you might not otherwise have done.....
you'll be saving over $350 (and even more when you take into account the tax diffierentials)....
use it to make your time at WDW even more spectacular...
and staying offsite can be very nice...
until 10 years ago we almost always stayed off property (to save money).....we still had a grand time..
this year we're going offsite for part of the trip because i'm annoyed with disney for cancelling EE......
anyway.......you'll see....you'll still have a wonderful time....
(and hampton inns are very nice indeed)....

 

[gepetto]

I have stayed on and off-site and have never had a bad time! Have a good trip!

 

[Grumpy92]

This will be a good experience for you. You need to try both ways atlest once. It will make you appreciate whatever your preference down the line is. Just make sure you give your self plenty of time for travel, Central florida roads can get congested and add your parking fee to your rate. I am sure you will still have a good time. Make sure you do a trip report when you return so we can get your feedback.

 

[Firefighter Mickey]

Originally posted by Mickeyluver37


Your siggy says Fairfield Inn. Was this the one at Universal? We have 6 nights booked at CBR, and 3 at Universal Fairfield. The Universal package is all paid for, and there are huge penalties for cancelling. Right now, I'm really regretting it, and wishing we just stayed at CBR the whole 9 nights. So, any good thoughts? How is the continental breakfast? Is this going to be a huge dissapointment after a week at Disney? I've asked about this hotel on both the Universal and Orlando boards, and apparently no one has ever stayed there, LOL.

The Fairfield Inn at Universal has only recently opened, hence the lack of information. We stayed there for a few nights in January. The property was fine, but someone should have fired the interior decorator or certain color/print combinations should be made a punishable crime (it's not really that bad, just a bit startling when you first walk into the room). The continental breakfast is typical for most Fairfields I've stayed at, juices, coffee, tea, fruit, cold cerial, various breads and muffins - nothing fancy, but certainly adequate. The front desk staff were helpful and friendly.

It is within walking distance of Universal, but it's a long walk; we did that one day and the next decided to go ahead and pay for the parking fee at Universal and drove the car. the walk over in the morning wasn't so bad, it was the walk back after a day in the parks that was the killer.

There are a number of places to eat nearby, and a number of other places that will deliver. There's also a walgreen's (with liquore store) just across the parking lot.

We chose the Fairlfield for price, location, and because I had a Marriott Rewards certificate which got us a free night (and I earned reward points on the other nights). I can't compare it to Disney hotels, because we've only ever stayed at the "Home away from home" resorts (OKW and BWV) which aren't anything like a typical Disney hotel room.

 

[cottontail]

Hi Sher:

I noticed that the american express code had rates of 84.00 at the value resorts when you are going 2/14/02 -4/20/02. I think you would just have to join american express and I would go for the no fee card. Now is your hampton for 58.00 including the tax or not? Have a great trip whatever you do.

You can reach the codes on this site. Near the top of the resorts page, just in case you didn't know.

Deb.

 

[dizfamily]

Would you rent a car if you were staying onsite? If you rent a car no matter what, then that doesn't factor in. But we never rent a car when we stay offsite and I factor that cost in when comparing offsite vs onsite rates. Our last trip we stayed offsite because dh had a convention at an offsite hotel and that's where the company put us (hey, it was paid for, so no complaints) but we then had to rent a car AND pay for parking at the parks. This time I begged dh to ask his boss if we could stay onsite instead...told him we'd even be saving the company money (the convention hotel is $200/night and we're staying at POR at $124/night) and they said yes!! Since we're saving so much on the hotel, they're paying for a rental car for him but we don't need one now, which saves US money. I HATED driving to the parks last time. We got lost EVERY time and it ended up taking us like 45 minutes or more to get back to a hotel that is literally 2 miles from the WDW gates. Not to mention the fact that parking at this hotel was VERY far from the hotel entrance....had to walk carrying a sleeping 5 YO!

 

[susy]

If you end up staying at Hampton Inn , is this the Lake Buena Vista one right outside Downtown Disney???If so, my sister stayed there and said it was nice and I believe they have breakfast. You can also get on the property real quick by going into the DD entrance, the make a left at the end of the street and you'll be at the parks in minutes.

 

[walt's assistant]

Sher, don't feel bad. Some of the BEST visits we've had to WDW we stayed off-site.

This will get me shot by just about everyone here but WDW properties are, from a purely cost basis, a questionable value. We all pay it because we enjoy the 24 hour Disney magical experience. However, when you consider how relatively little time we actually spend in our rooms and what we get for the money, it is a sobering question indeed.

We enjoy staying on-site because it makes the vacation extra-special. But there are other off-site properties that are very nice indeed and are priced well below Disney.

OK everyone, please don't shoot me too much for this post!

 

[MJames41]

I won't shoot you, Walt's Assistant, but I do disagree with you - at least in my opinion. Our vacation in 2000 started at the Marriott Orlando World Conference Center. Fancy name for a very fancy hotel (that we got for $60 via Priceline). And, for us, it just sucked. They didn't mention the hidden fees (about another $30 per day), the shuttle to the theme parks was supposed to be free (it wasn't) - and it went there a few times a day (3 or 4 in the morning and 3 or 4 at night). It is isolated (the hotel is about 1/2 mile down the road - one entrance in - to take a taxi anywhere cost $2.00 to leave the parking area), and it just wasn't what we wanted. We didn't feel like we were truly on vacation until we cancelled the last night (without getting any kind of refund or even an apology for the washer's and dryers breaking down with our clothes in them) and went from a 4 star resort to the 3 star All Star Sports. It was just so much better there. My one night at the All Stars, when you consider that I forfeited the money paid for the extra night at the MOWCC cost me around $150 - and it was so worth it.

I know there are some nice off site resorts out there, and Sher I hope your vacation is fantastic, but I don't want to stay off site unless we are going off site (the Caribbe Royal and the Grovesnor in particular I want to stay at sometime). The MOWCC is a world class resort - but to us it was just a hotel room, where as a Disney resort is part of the vacation. Enjoy.

 

[B3LM]

Sher, you'll still have a great time! We did the same thing. We've decided on a last minute trip over Easter break and I was able to get a ressie at AsMu for 3/29 - 4/5. But, I just can't justify spending over $100 per night when we could get a family suite at Comfort Inn LBV for $67 per night! The family suite has a queen bed, and a kids' area with bunk beds, a junior bed, and a 19" tv/vcr. Sure beats the 2 double beds at All Stars.

My DH always tries to stay at Hampton Inns when he travels, too. He says they're really nice and he loves the continental breakfast that's included.

Have a great trip!
Beth

 

[The Pluto People]

We have stayed off site and we've stayed on site...the only thing that really matters is that you are with your family, on vacation, and having fun! Relax and enjoy!

 

[eeyore0062]

I am sure that you will have a great time anyway. Think of it this way... you can save that money for the next time when you DO stay on property. Personally, I just can't bring myself to stay off property, I love the whole immersion in the Disney concept, but you have to do what is right for you at this time.