Hi folks! I generally lurk here, but I need the collective wisdom! I've been kicking a decision down the road over and over again. Clearly no one else can decide for me, but I'm wondering if I missed anything.
Past race weekends, I've stayed onsite and relied on Disney transportation. Usually just a 2 or 3 night stay. Now I'm running Dopey for my first and surely only time plus two fun days after. So a much longer stay with my best friend. This time, I've booked two options and it's time to cancel one. We will have a rental car. Pricing is probably about the same.
Option 1: I booked the new Drury Inn in Disney Springs with a great deal almost a year ago. I have two rooms, a view of Epcot (firework view), a balcony, and in room minifridge and microwave. Seems so much easier for two adults who might need a little space when staying together for a whole week. The free breakfast and kickback are minor considerations. The access to Disney Spring is appealing because we don't plan to do park time Jan 3-6. We'll see a movie, take naps, and rest our legs. We will have to drive ourselves to the races. Now that the maps are out, I think that we're okay to do that?
Option 2: Port Orleans Riverside: Our old standby and favorite. Can drive, but don't have to. Can use our car to get offsite and still save a little $$ by hitting grocery stores, etc, but no in-room meal prep capability beyond storing yogurt in the fridge.
Option 3 (the complicated one) do a split stay and stay offsite when everything is really crowded and we're not doing parks anyway, then move to POR after the 10K. Never done a split stay, but it's not like that afternoon is super busy...
Anything I'm missing?
Grateful for insights!