Disney Hotel Prices are Out of Control!

[maxiesmom]

Disney subtracted a lot of the magic when they remodeled the resort rooms. They are not themed anymore. Just white hospital sheets cover the beds. YUCK!!!

Not at all resorts. You can't claim AoA isn't heavily themed. Or the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

As far as cost goes, season does change things. And it does at non Disney vacation areas as well. For example I'm heading up to Mackinaw City next weekend. Where the vast majority of places to stay are definitely 2* motels. And the only reason 2 nights is costing me only $270 total is that I'm staying off of the water, and staying Saturday to Monday. If I had booked Friday to Sunday it would have added another $200 to the cost. For places that could only hope to be a Disney value resort some day.

 

[SaintsManiac]

Disney subtracted a lot of the magic when they remodeled the resort rooms. They are not themed anymore. Just white hospital sheets cover the beds. YUCK!!!

I personally think bed runners and bedspreads are gross, so it's fine with me. Doesn't look like hospital bedding at all in person.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Disney subtracted a lot of the magic when they remodeled the resort rooms. They are not themed anymore. Just white hospital sheets cover the beds. YUCK!!!

FWIW we only had white sheets in All-Star Sports in September 2017. The bed runners had been gone for at least a little bit at that point. This was pre-refurb (Sports hasn't quite started their refub yet).

ETA: It personally wasn't a big deal to us. Seen enough hotel rooms that just have white sheets so it was NBD to us.

 

[kaytieeldr]

especially when you consider all the problems that one encounters when staying at a Disney resort. Dirty rooms

Agreed, problem. Rare occurence, but problem. Ideally the guest addresses it immediately.

housekeeping that doesn't always come

Agreed, problem. Rare occurence, but problem. Ideally the guest addresses it immediately.

and random, on demand, room invasions are just to name a few.

Standard operating procedure for, what? Eighteen months? Going on two years. Guests who know in advance, dislike the policy/practice can vote with their wallets.

There are multiple places to stay outside Disney property that are close, don't have resort fees, parking fees or WIFI fees.

There are multiple places inside WDW that don't have resort fees and don't charge for wi-fi. There are places inside SEE that charge both parking and resort fees. Disney's direct competitor? Resort fees and parking fees.

Actually it a Ramada in Kissimmee with good reviews.

Is that the three star, or the three and a half star?

 

[kaytieeldr]

I wouldn't stay in a 60 dollar a night hotel ANYWHERE in the US. Pretty much guaranteed to be a #*$% hole

Red Roof Inn near me - a budget hotel chain - is over $200 per night much of the time.

Disney subtracted a lot of the magic when they remodeled the resort rooms. They are not themed anymore. Just white hospital sheets cover the beds. YUCK!!!

if only hospital sheets matched Disney quality.

 

[bryanb]

Except it isn't just marketing. We are about to move five miles from Maingate but keeping our DVC membership... why the heck would anyone do that? Because there are benefits of being on-property that are worth the price. Not everyone will see that value, but it is still there and tens hundreds of thousands of other people do.

Wow! That's actually impressive. You're right that it's not just marketing, but a lot of the actual decisions Disney has made are marketing decisions. Although I probably wouldn't keep a DVC membership if I moved to the area, I am one of those hundreds of thousands who see the value myself of an on-site stay. But either way, I see it as a good thing you're getting a lot out of that membership!

If someone doesn't want to pay the premium price associated with on-site hotels, staying off-site is a perfect great way to enjoy WDW and the greater Orlando area. I've had several fun trips to WDW staying just outside the gates, eating a few offsite meals at some great restaurants, and even saving money in a great room. So I guess there are answers for a wide variety of people and vacation needs.

 

[bryanb]

By the same token, those of us who choose to stay on site get told we’re fools for paying what it costs to do so.

That's the beauty of the free market, I guess! Not everyone values the same things... so the ideal price of any good (like hotel rooms) is the place where supply and demand meet. By definition, half of the market will be willing to pay it (and more) and half of the market will think it's too expensive.

If everyone thinks that the hotels are a great value, then Disney has failed to charge enough and they'll always be running out of hotel rooms. If a huge portion of the market thinks it's overpriced and yet they are still filling 90% of their rooms, they're doing something right!

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

We stayed five years ago at Poly and three years ago at GF. Late last year I wanted to stay at the Contemporary but it was $1000/night. We stayed at Disney Springs Holiday Inn instead for a $100/ night. Not the best hotel but got 60 day fast passes and extra hours so adequate for $100/ night. The prices of the in park resorts also seem high to me compared to what you get.

Uber was great from the hotel to the parks and we usually had a three minute wait so everything worked very well.

This where I'm not sure I'll stay onsite after this trip. As someone who uses the DDP (both free and paid for), I'm used to feeling I "have" to stay on site. But the prices have grown and grown, while technically non-Disney hotels keep getting the same EMH and FP booking privileges. It's at the point that the math seems to say I could find a couple places that would house the six of us (I do give Disney credit for having more options for six than other hotel competitors), get Disney benefits, and save enough that paying OOP for our many, many character meals and taking Uber XL still could save us money overall.
We're partially staying CL for the first time, and I have *loved* my concierge experience with Disney Signature Services so far in planning. But next time? When we won't have a 5yo princess mermaid who "needs" a LM room to truly live? I don't see us paying for a non-CL room except maybe for real (not scaled down) free dining.

 

[Figment Mom]

I've yet to be able to justify (for my own budget) the cost of a deluxe or even a moderate when I'm perfectly content at Pop. I book with room discounts and, while I've noticed an increase, it's still a reasonable cost to me.

We stay at random midwestern hotels several times a year for baseball tournaments. It's always Holiday Inn and Comfort Inn level and after taxes and fees it's consistently $150 or more per night. Some of the rooms have turned out to be a bit...questionable. That (or a bit less) is what I paid at Pop this summer. I found the refurbished rooms to be very nice.

 

[Ninja Mom]

We have stayed at WDW resorts of all levels six or seven times a year for the past thirty years, from Pop and all of the All Stars to concierge level at the Contemporary. Not a single time have we had a “dirty” room. Not once has housekeeping failed to service our room. To my knowledge we’ve never had an “on demand invasion” of our room.

I don’t think Disney offerings are “inferior” at all, but I am happy that some may consider them so. Lower demand helps keep prices in check.

You say Disney “rips people off.” I could not disagree more. People are generally pretty careful with their money. If Disney was truly a ripoff, demand wouldn’t be what it is.

Momma always told me if it sounds too good to be true it might very well be. Can you offer the secret to your success in avoiding these Disney resort problems? I'd be interested in adopting your strategy so I no longer experience any problems.
Thanks.
~NM

 

[Forevermarypoppins]

Absolutely insane pricing
For everyone who says the Free dining really isn't free, I say The resort rates are increased in relation to all the "new" rides and attractions we all wanted. WE ARE paying for them if we pay those rates.

 

[maryj11]

I have been checking on prices for next year and it is getting way over my head. We have been staying at either a moderate or deluxe the past several years. It seems that what a deluxe used to cost is what a moderate cost now. A preferred room at CBR is 333.00 a night when we want to go. The value price is about the same as what a moderate used to be.
Our favorite deluxe the Poly is 558.00 for a standard room. The cheapest deluxe room I could find was a standard at WL for 389.00. I know this year both of those resorts only had 15% off discount.
I have a feeling the value resorts are going to book up quick for 2020.

 

[bryanb]

Absolutely insane pricing
For everyone who says the Free dining really isn't free, I say The resort rates are increased in relation to all the "new" rides and attractions we all wanted. WE ARE paying for them if we pay those rates.

Also, whether you pay for the dining plans or get them for "free," it's an interesting psychological trick that they play.

People start calculating whether DDP is "worth it" based on ordering a lot of food (especially the more expensive items) on the menu. Then, you will pass "break-even" if those most-expensive meals exceed the price of the expensive room package or dining plan you purchased.

But most guests wouldn't go ordering the most expensive items at every meal if they hadn't set up this scheme. Or in fact, Disney knows that most visitors aren't naturally going to buy $35+ table service meals and $20+ quick service meals every time they eat on-site. Except when you're on the dining plan, it feels like a good deal because you pre-paid and committed yourself to spending that much on food each day of your visit.

 

[Brett Wyman]

I just looked at the Hilton Bonnet Creek website and it does appear a good option and worth the $50/night extra compared to Holiday Inn Disney Springs.

The 50 dollar resort fee choked me up at first but their resort fee at least includes half price breakfast for kids and free dinner for them too.

 

[rotlex]

Anyone who defends Disney’s current hotel pricing is fully brainwashed by the mouse. Been going for over 20 years and find recent price increases really hard to swallow.

Just a few years ago the Wilderness Lodge was our go to deluxe. Rack rate was $250 or so. I’m now paying that or more for a moderate that used to cost $160 rack just a while back. The fact most deluxe resorts are now $4-700 per night is INSANE. Even with a 30% discount your still ridiculously high.

We stayed a few days prior to resort check in at the Hampton Lake Buena Vista this year. Fantastic clean large room with free breakfast and coffee for $95 per night. Oh, and no parking fee.

While we booked a bounce back for next year already we are seriously considering switching to off site and saving a few thousand on a two week stay.

 

[k5xs]

Momma always told me if it sounds too good to be true it might very well be. Can you offer the secret to your success in avoiding these Disney resort problems? I'd be interested in adopting your strategy so I no longer experience any problems.
Thanks.
~NM

What can I say? If you’re experiencing those problems, I’d suggest you ask for remedy. And if you don’t get it, I suggest you stay elsewhere.

“Momma” was right. But it doesn’t apply in our case.

 

[mamamelody2]

Not at all resorts. You can't claim AoA isn't heavily themed. Or the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

As far as cost goes, season does change things. And it does at non Disney vacation areas as well. For example I'm heading up to Mackinaw City next weekend. Where the vast majority of places to stay are definitely 2* motels. And the only reason 2 nights is costing me only $270 total is that I'm staying off of the water, and staying Saturday to Monday. If I had booked Friday to Sunday it would have added another $200 to the cost. For places that could only hope to be a Disney value resort some day.

One of the reasons we went to WDW last year was because I started researching a Mackinac Island trip. GOOD GRIEF, the price for the hotel, plus the ferry daily (if staying in Mackinaw City) plus bike rental, food, etc... We stayed at All Star Sports with free dining and it was less per day than a Mackinac trip. ALL tourist places are just very overpriced these days.

 

[pjhootch]

Rack rates for the deluxe resorts seem insane to me. I am staying at WL this year for 4 nights. It is expensive but clearly I am willing to pay it this time because of what I want out of this trip. That is the balancing/decision that goes into everyone’s planning. I would never say someone else is crazy for paying high hotel rates. I WOULD say it about myself if I gave in and paid some of the rates I saw available for my dates! Over the years we have done Disney just about every way except in a tent. lol. Last time at Christmas 2017 we were 5 real adults and stayed at Staybridge Suites in a 2 bedroom with a kitchenette. I had started out with a reservation at AOA and switched to OKW and then switched to the Staybridge with a AAA discount. Saved $2000 and had a great room and time. I know I can maximize my budget staying offsite instead of value. I used to love the moderate resorts but I seem to go deluxe or offsite these days. I will NOT go over $400 a night. Not going to happen. So obviously I will be priced out soon since WL is the only rack rate below my cut off and if all 5 of us go we cannot stay there.

 

[SarahC97]

I've found good deals on Priceline. Last Thanksgiving, I paid $88/night for CSR, in two weeks I'm paying $103/night for the Swan. There are still good prices out there.

 

[Captainkidd76]

yup - just u

may is the start of summer

summer is expensive

No, not just her.

I've ALWAYS gone in the summer and never paid remotely close to what they're asking for now. Second, Disney has so many different seasons and dates for when they start and stop, you practically need to be an expert in trigonometry to find an inexpensive entire week.