Why do you stay offsite?

[Teacher03]

I love to stay onsite, but offsite is best for us. We are 5 adults, and my DD usually takes a friend, so 6 adults. A condo is cheaper than 2 hotel rooms, even the value resorts. My husband also likes having more room. I also like getting up in the morning and having breakfast in my pajamas! But my dream is to one day stay at the Grand Floridian. Someday

 

[CarolA]

If you want a cheap hotel then it is better to stay on site. Disney Value resorts will give you much better service for only a few dollars more than offsite roach motels.

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I love statements like this.

I just posted this on another thread so I happen to have it handy


So let's compare a Disney "Value" to your local Marriott Fairfield Inn at Lake Buena Vista (Note both are ranked 2.5 stars by expedia and having stayed at the Fairfiedl I can attest it 's NOT a "roach motel" )

1. Interior Corridors Disney - NO, Fairfield Yes
2. Fridge in room. Disney PAY, Fairfield FREE (And I think they have microwaves too)
3. Food Court. Both have. Fairfield has Pizza Hut
4. Free Breakfast. Well if pay rack rate and get "free" dining Disney will allow you to use one of your meals for breakfast. Fairfield - Always
5. Loyalty Progrm. Disney Fairfield. I just spent two nights FREE at a 4 star hotel in Paris on the Marriott program.
6. Check in. Checked into both. Fairfield lines were shorter
7. Airport transportation. Fairfield PAY. Disney Free
8. Transportation to parks. Both have Disney's is better
9. Room size. Didn't measure but my Fairfield room seemed bigger (and with interior corridors it was quiter!)
10. Theme Disney wins hands down.
11. Discount availablity. Fairfield lots of public discounts. Disney - hope they send you a pin
12. Internet Access Disney $10 per 24 hours. Fairfield FREE!
13. King beds. Fairfield FREE, Disney $10 a day!

Price for a random day in June Fairfield $79, All Star Movies $114 or $140 for a "preferred room" (No discounts on either one used)

Savings on room alone $245 for a 7 night stay. Parking cost at Disney $84. Net savings (not including cheaper meals off site) IF you were already renting a car $161. And if you compare the nicer hotels the differences and prices get more interesting. For the same random night Boardwalk Inn standard view was $380 rack with a "special" rate of $279. Buena Vista Palace had a special rate of $89, Marriott World Center had a special rate of $179 or $209 with "free" breakfast (at least they are honest about it "free" costs more LOL!) Embassy Suites with Free breakfast, suite and evening reception $119.

Why do I stay offsite? Disney pricing does not equal their quality.

I travel A LOT and Disney hotels don't measure up to the industry standards for the prices they charge.


I generally do rent a car and the commute is not really any different from a Disney Value then to this Fairfield if you drive. I like the flexibilty a car offers and find that "escaping" to better food is becoming more and more of a necessity.

 

[starbox]

We own DVC, so we do get our fill of the fun of being an onsite guest without paying the deluxe prices - BUT we also travel for weekend trips and stay offsite. Why? Because I am a hotel snob too!

If you hotwire or priceline, it's really easy to get a 4-5 star offsite for around 100 inclusive of taxes. No Disney Deluxe has compared in terms of quality to our stay at the Peabody (with water bottles, robes, and umbrellas, a HUGE room/bathroom, views of fireworks at all Disney parks PLUS Universal and Seaworld, a second flat screen TV in the bathroom, plush bathmat, deep marble tub, turndown service) and that was a whopping 90$ a night via. Priceline. We're staying at Gaylord Palms for 76$ this weekend. Orlando is the best place to consistently get luxury hotels via. the online discount sites.

I just can't pay Disney prices for a deluxe when I know I can stay at a real 5 star for a third of the price.

 

[littlestar]

I own enough DVC points for one Disney onsite stay a year (we hit the parks a lot when we stay onsite).

But I truly like staying offsite, too, in my favorite Marriott Vacation Club resorts for a different type vacation. We usually vacation 3 to 4 times a year. I like the bedding/comfort at Marriott and having real cable TV when it's a relaxing type trip instead of a park trip. Some trips it's wonderful to not set my foot in a theme park and snuggle in Marriott's down comforters and just read a good book.

 

[ntsammy5]

We made 42 onsite visits before we stayed offsite last November - we stayed at POFQ 2 weeks ago, but that may be the last time we stay onsite. I can get a great timeshare for $329/week - a fraction of the cost of even a value resort. I always rent a car so that's a wash and we have AP so parking is not an issue. Theme for the resorts is also not an issue since many if not most of the offsite places have great landscaping, great pools and hot tubs.

We avoid EMH parks in any event, and offsite food is not only better but cheaper - but we can still eat in the parks if we choose to.

Offsite is cheaper, more comfortable, offers more choices and allows visits to other venues. Works for me

 

[Purseval]

If you do a search on my name in the reviews section you will see that my wife and I use Priceline and we normally stay at 3 stars or better, though we have ocassionally been stuck with a 2.5 star during busy periods. We have been coming to Orlando twice a year for over 20 years and we have NEVER paid more than $100/night for an offsite hotel, and that was the Omni Championsgate. Normally we pay anywhere from $30 to $50 per night for hotels and $100/night for a vacation home when my kids would travel with us. We drive to Orlando so car rental isn't an issue. Not only are the rooms overpriced you either have to buy their overpriced food to go along with it or go offsite anyway to eat. We are early risers so even without EMH we always get to see whatever we came to the parks for with little waiting. Anyone who thinks they can match offsite prices with WDW prices is doing extremely creative math.

 

[Lisa P.]

For some, like my DH, the break from all-Disney-all-the-time is what appeals about offsite. Disney's marketing machine is "on" full-blast at the resorts. I love the themes. But I don't like how onsite Guest Services limits itself to Disney admissions, Disney dinner show tickets and Disney restaurants where offsite resort Guest Services include these and much, much more. Onsite gift shops are limited to selling Disney merchandise only and it's pretty much the same at most of them - all at Disney prices, of course. Onsite cable TV offers limited options compared with offsite resorts too. Immersion is entertaining (I do like it) but it's also a shameless sales pitch and hyperstimulating so leaving it can provide the more restful break our family needs on off days, spent enjoying our resort.

It takes 40-45+ min to get inside the MK from an offsite resort vs a 5-7 min walk from the Contemporary.

Maria, this extreme example simply doesn't hold for most comparable situations. Comparing timeshare condos as you are here, most DVC resorts take far longer to reach the MK, even with a direct bus or boat, considering the walk to the bus/boat stop, wait for the next vehicle, and we never took 40-45+ minutes to reach the MK gate from Vistana, Silver Lake, Bonnet Creek or Cypress Point (IOW, nearby offsite resorts): 5-10 min from door to TTC parking, 5-10 min walk & tram ride or walk to TTC in early AM, 5-10 min express monorail to the MK gate. Taking a Disney bus from the other DVCs includes a walk to the bus stop and a wait for a bus, easily up to 20+ min so the TTC/monorail time has been a complete wash for us, on average, with our many on-and-offsite experiences since 1985.

Bay Lake Towers at the Contemporary Resort is unique among timeshares and even among Disney resorts, in that you can walk to MK without waiting on Disney transport. However, it carries the second major reason we usually stay offsite nowadays in spades. Our offsite stays, including resale timeshare purchases, exchange expenses, maint fees, still only cost us ~$600 or less on average for a spacious 2BR for a full week when kids are out of school. $600 won't even cover the maint fees for a studio week at BLT, not to mention the high DVC purchase price and forget about a 2BR, which costs 3 times as much!!! We get our entire, complete vacation (2BR, travel costs, park passes, food, etc.) for less than most DVCers would spend on their BLT 2BR accommodations alone. We've traded into DVC but that's not an option for the average vacationer on this forum.

We're a family of 5 and we often travel with 7-12 people. Like us, I don't believe most families can afford the price of onsite DVC larger condo stays or multiple rooms. So in order to stay onsite in a nice deluxe or condo, most will either overspend their budget, eliminate romance by sharing a smaller room with others, or skip the significant comforts and amenities of a more spacious condo in order to stay onsite. We don't. The trade-off is worth it to us. OP, I hope my response addresses your question.

Maria, I'm glad you're finally moving toward what you really prefer by selling your Vistana and buying more DVC. Your posts over recent years have trended in that direction. I'm sure you'll enjoy it. For a diehard Disney fan, nothing else will suffice.

 

[MiaSRN62]

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[ntsammy5]

Most of this is personal preference, but about the only thing Disney resorts offer that you can't get for less elsewhere is location - and then only the Monorail and/or Epcot resorts have the difference that really counts.

 

[Brian Noble]

But part of the fun and ambience of a vacation to me, is a resort feel. My kids always loved making friends with other kids in the pool----having a pool bar nearby---themeing again. But I can see both sides.

The newer developments can give you the best of both worlds. Windsor Hills, for example, has both your "backyard" pool, *and* a very nice resort pool. Except for the pool slides (themed at OKW, "just a slide" at WH) the main pools at these two resorts are very similar. When we stayed at WH, we'd use "our" pool most of the time, but go to the bigger one a few times during the week as well.

As for transportation time: my personal experience is closer to Lisa's than yours. Comparing travel time to MK from OKW with Disney transporation to driving from a well-located offsite resort, total travel time might be a little faster from Disney on average, but Disney has significantly more variance. Sometimes it's a good deal faster---other times it's slower. Twice on our most recent trip, it took more than an hour from the time we sat down at the Miller's Road bus stop in OKW to the time we got dropped off at the MK bus depot.

In fact, those two afternoon returns were so unpleasant that at the end of our most recent trip, my wife and I decided that we'd start driving to MK from any onsite resorts that use bus transportation. From now on, we'll be saving the bus system for times when we plan to have a few drinks with dinner.

Your overall point is well-taken though: some people place a high value on being onsite and would literally pay almost anything for it. It's hard to predict how anyone else would value it until they tried it both ways. But, once you do, you'll know if you're a "must be onsite" person, or an "it's not all that" person.

For me? I was convined that once we stayed on our first onsite trip a couple of years ago (through an II exchange) that we'd just have to buy DVC, because it would be so much better. Much to my suprise, I instead discovered that I'm an "it's not all that" guy. It was nice, but not worth buying.

There are plenty of people who feel differently, because Disney has no trouble renting its rooms and selling its timeshares at very attractive prices. More power to them. And, who knows? If resale prices continue dropping at the rate reported in the ROFR thread, maybe I'll change my mind.

 

[jjjmranch]

I say just stay wherever you're most happiest. If offsite is for you, great. Same goes for on-site. The times you spend with your family are most important, whether it's on Disney property or going to it. Chill! You're at WDW!!

 

[crusoe2]

Our primary reason for switching to offsite is that our kids don't do well sharing a bed (17yo DS & 6yo DD) and we haven't found an onsite solution that works for us. Anything that gives the kids their own beds costs too much. We considered doing things like taking an air mattress so that we could manage with one room onsite. But our conclusion was that, for us anyway, this just seemed nuts. We're getting a very nice 3br condo at WH for about the same price as one room at Pop with - are you ready for this? - the 4/3 discount deal that was available thru most of June. Yep, even with that good a discount the condo is only costing about $125 more and that includes what we'll spend on parking. We stayed in a condo at WH on our last trip and I doubt we'll ever go back to staying onsite. After about 8 trips, we've found that the few Disney onsite perks that we enjoy just aren't worth the Disney price anymore. The condo gives us more of the amenities that matter to us for a fraction of what we would pay to be a 5 minute walk from the Magic Kingdom. And that's what it all boils down to - what matters most to you.

 

[Lisa P.]

When you stay at a disney resort, the bus or monorail drops u right off at the MK front gates. You totally bypass parking in the TTC.....getting the tram....then getting the monorail or ferry to the MK. That alone, can take 30 min.

I understand about this. And sometimes it definitely makes all the difference. Yet other times, the wait for a MK bus or boat is just as long or longer than the time taken for drivers to ride the tram and monorail. We've stayed at BWV and waited with a crowd in the morning while multiple, shared buses got mostly filled at S/D/BC/YC and only had room for a few more BW guests, standing room only, and we continued to wait for 45+ minutes just to board a bus. Then there's still the ride over to MK, bringing the total time over 55+ min.

If you compare the wait-and-ride time from OKW or SSR or AKV to Epcot, for example, with the drive-and-tram time from one of the closer offsites, like Bonnet Creek or Vistana, it'll probably average out the same. With the sizes of OKW and SSR and AKV, the majority of onsite condo guests are taking a bus or driving a car to all the parks and besides MK, offsiters' travel time is comparable with onsite drivers who avoid adding a wait for a bus. It's just not cut-and-dried to say that onsite is faster than offsite. And I do think that drawing a comparison between walking from the Contemporary and a (my opinion only, perhaps) worst-case 45 min Vistana to MK gate is not really representative of overall park transit times, onsite vs. offsite. Since MK is one of our less favored parks, we don't even consider it as heavily as some understandably may, who love it more.

People have different preferences of how or where they want to vacation. Some, such as yourself, just don't appreciate the disney themeing and immersion as much as someone like myself does. It's ok to be different.

Oh, I agree!!! I do appreciate the themes and immersion. But I don't think it's worth a several-fold increase in the cost to us for condo-style vacationing, which is our preference. Maybe if we liked a different kind of accommodation or if budget was less of a concern...?

I'd pay big money to be able to skip the TTC parking/tram/monorail/ before finally getting into the MK.

I daresay you do, at BLT. And it's worth it to you - that's fine!

It's hard to predict how anyone else would value it until they tried it both ways. But, once you do, you'll know if you're a "must be onsite" person, or an "it's not all that" person.

Absolutely!!!

So looking for opinions on why you stay offsite instead of on property.

This is the question. And it's clearly got a different answer for different people. One that hasn't been mentioned yet... our Orlando vacations always include a visit to Sea World, Universal, a state park and/or the beach. Some of the Disney resorts are a bit of a drive from the highways and so, less convenient on those days. Why pay more for a stay that's less convenient? Staying onsite is more enjoyable if one is spending their time mostly onsite too.

 

[cannonballer]

We are staying offsite 350 for ten days plus 60 bucks in lynx bus passes. WAY cheaper than disney or anything really. I dont see paying for value resorts. It makes no sense to me but I am poor and just want to do the parks and enjoy meals NOT at WDW!

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

I feel like I should be a voice of the other side. We have stayed at a couple of places off site for our first 4 Disney trips.

The first time, someone we knew had a timeshare available the we decided to use. It was a wonderful resort, the rooms were nice, there was a grocery store within walking distance, we could have spend the entire vacation there. But, it was far enough from Disney that it was annoying. We did not drive since we live in Oregon and since we were in budget mode, we did not want to rent a car for 2 weeks, I was a teenager and my mom hates driving, if she could have a personal driver her entire life she'd die happy.

The other 3 trips, we spent time at the maingate east/Old Town area hotels. I must say the location was great as we were just minutes past Disney's Wide World of Sports, there was a nice grocery store, Target and Walmart jsut down the road, Old Town is super fun and there were some decent restaurants around.

Also staying off-site didn't influence our renting a car situation, it wasn't going to happen so we either had to pay a lot to use cabs, shuttles or town cars or use the free shuttles that are the worst things ever. Not only did they usually get you there right at or after rope drop, but they picked you up before the nighttime shows.

So April 2007 comes along and free dining is offered. We book it! $1800 for 14 nights at Pop Century with 10-day PH tickets for 2. I look at it this way: the same park tickets would come to over $500, transport to/from airport is $100, dining at $25 per day per person is $700 so essentially I am paying only $500 for the room for both of us for 14 nights, that under $36 per night.

We have great Disney transport, we have food taken care of before we get there, we don't have to worry about transportation to/from airpot, we get to stay at the parks later or arrive earlier, we're emersed in Disney all the time, we get to go to MNSSHP because we will be able to go to/from the resort at anny time.

You never need a pin code to get a good deal at Disney. They have seasonal rates that are great and other random deals such as a current one that you can book a CL room at a deluxe for very cheap. You can rent DVC points if you must stay at a deluxe for as little as $80 per night.

 

[Brian Noble]

I think the one thing everyone can agree on, whether they prefer offsite or on, is this: if you can't or won't have a car, there is no way you should be staying anywhere but on-property, period.

 

[TamaraQT]

I think the one thing everyone can agree on, whether they prefer offsite or on, is this: if you can't or won't have a car, there is no way you should be staying anywhere but on-property, period.

Now that is a point that EVERYONE here should agree on!! Well I would love to chime in on this conversation. Only problem is, that I have only stayed off-site. I think on-site is for either die-hard Disney fans, or people who didn't rent a car

 

[jerrifox]

It seems like a lot of people are pretty passionate about their response, either way. I have previously stayed onsite at the Contemporary, and really enjoyed the convenience of transportation and the beauty of the resort. However, Disney, unfortunately is geared to a family of four. As I have three children, there are few options. Staying offsite allows more room at the same price or cheaper than staying onsite. By staying offsite with my family of five, I was to add an extra day to the vacation and still came out ahead when compared to the cost of staying onsite. However, if I were to travel with just my husband, I would probably stay onsite...It just boils down to the options with party size for me, really.

 

[PrincessDadx2]

Savings on room alone $245 for a 7 night stay. Parking cost at Disney $84. Net savings (not including cheaper meals off site) IF you were already renting a car $161.

CarolA,

I think you make my point. For a single hotel room I don't think the savings are significant. If you were just staying at WDW the benefits of EMH, ME, transportation, etc. are worth more to me than a hundred bucks or two. As others have said, with a package or discount you would be able to stay at the value resorts most times of the year for about the same price as the Marriott. You could save more by staying at a $30 a night or $50 a night real "roach motel" but I think you lose on the value chain.

I agree that Disney does not have top deluxe service, but it is certainly better than most low end hoteliers in Orlando and on par with Marriott (I am Marriott platinum) and you have the added benefits of being on site.

I still believe that if you are happy with a single cheap clean room that onsite is your best bet. If you are looking for more space or luxury then you are better off looking offsite.

Also, some perks cannot be duplicated offsite so that requires paying up. I personally did this to have a Savannah view at AKL and Magic Kingdom view at the Contemporary.

 

[MiaSRN62]

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