Help! Debating on site vs. offsite. AGAIN!

[Mama Steph]

*Crossposted in Orlando attractions board since I need both sides.*

There will be 8 of us, dh and I, our 5 kids (15, 11, 10, 8 and 6) and my sister, staying for 10 nights. We are currently booked at ASMu in a family suite and preferred room. I have now found out that for a little bit less money we could stay at Sheraton Vistana in a 2 bedroom. Bonuses would be more space, nicer decor, full kitchen and having to rent cars so we would be able to eat offsite as well. Downsides are: still never having stayed onsite, not being at Dis 24/7, no dining plan.

What would you do? I have to decide before our final payment is due July 8th.

 

[Manda_the_pirate]

I have never stayed off-property... However my vote is definitely to stay on! You can't go wrong with being immersed in Disney atmosphere 24/7! Plus the use of busses, and being surrounded by other disers. And come on, the dining plan is a must! haha. I dont think I could ever not stay on property.

 

[B&WMickey]

With that many people and for that length of time it’s hard not to opt for more space and plusher digs. I love staying onsite but I’ve never had to travel with a group that size.

 

[Eeyore's Pal]

If you decided to stay at Sheraton Vistana, make sure you familiarize yourself on the various sections. Some are much newer and nicer than others.

We stayed in a new section, everything in the condo was beautiful, but there was no ceiling fan in the master bedroom. We actually went to Walmart and bought a $10 box fan, because there was insufficient circulation to keep the room cool.

 

[Merryweather27]

I guess I'd say it depends how important the dining plan is for you.

We just finished an off-site trip and thought it was great, but we always eat OOP so dining wasn't an issue. Actually we probably missed late EMH the most of anything since we're super-late sleepers, but even that wasn't a very big deal.

 

[crazyfordisney2000]

Do you have any interest in a split stay? You could stay off site for the first 4 or 5 days, rent your car, drive to offsite accomodations, do any grocery shopping etc then ditch the car, stay on site for the second half of your vacation and take ME back to the airport. We are going to try this in May because we want to see what staying off site is like! It will also force us to go to Seaworld and eat off site and maybe the savings will persuade us to always stay off site?? Or maybe not.

 

[francie57]

I would stay with the on-site. We have stayed off-site in the past and never again - can't stand all the wasted travel time. Did you ever consider going onto the DVC boards and see about renting points for a two bedroom villa on-site. You would have a full kitchen, w/d in the room (so less packing), two full bathrooms. The largest ones are Old Key West. Others have posted that they have done this very cheaply and you still would have all the perks of staying on-site. We have never rented points but stay at the BWVs in a two bedroom every trip and really love them. We have also stayed at OKW and they were really nice.

 

[blessedby3]

I would stay on site for sure. We have stayed off site once, and it was just too much of a pain going back and forth to the parks. Especially with 5 kids, you or dh may want to take a couple of them back to the room and the others may want to stay. Its much easier to do this on property as you dont have to worry about having a car to get back and forth. Just hop on the busses and leave it to Disney. We stayed 10 nights at POP in 2008 with 8 people. Except for the fact that my mom got sick and had to stay in the room most of that time, it was a great trip. We did fine with the 2 value rooms. I much prefer deluxe, but when traveling with extra people, we usually do value (since they dont want to pay out for deluxe). Its also nice to have the perks of EMH and the dining plan if you want it. (we come out cheaper paying oop for meals instead of the plan since me and the kids split lots of meals). Remember to add $14 a day for parking to your budget and if you stay on property, you can use all Disney transportation and wont need to pay out for a rental.
Good luck to you with making the decision. I know its hard for some to make, but for us its a no brainer--ON ON ON!!

 

[mouselovenfamily]

We love the ease of on-site! Even with large groups, if a few want to go to the hotel, it's really easy with the transportation. We love the dining plan and not having to look at the prices when getting food. We love teh 24 hour Disney feel! Maybe the split stay would work for you to try both.

 

[Killian1114]

Nothing better than staying in a Disney resort.

 

[elranzer]

It's really simple if you sort your plans and priorities...

Stay on-site at Disney resorts if...
- You plan on only visiting Walt Disney World and nothing else
- Don't plan on renting a car or leaving Disney grounds
- Have the Annual Pass and can get those Passholder rates
- Your only non-Disney plan is one trip to Universal Studios and you don't mind taking a taxi or shuttle bus

Stay off-site if you...
- Prefer to rent a car and drive around Orlando and Kissimmie
- Are going to travel more of Florida on your trip (Tampa, Miami, Key West, etc)
- Want to visit Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure
- Want to do other Orlando attractions such as Medieval Times, SeaWorld, Gatorland, etc
- Value the extra savings of staying off-site

Best of Both Worlds #1: WDW Swan and Dolphin
- Sharaton owned and operated, ultra luxary rooms and beds
- Priced about the same as Disney's Moderate Resorts
- Still can get Extra Magic Hours benefits
- Huge luxury pools and hot tubs that emphasize size over theming
- 24-hour cafeteria located in the Dolphin building
- Internet service included with reservation
- Located on the EPCOT Boardwalk area, but much cheaper than Boardwalk Inn or Yacht/Beach Club
- Can walk to the Boardwalk and Yacht/Beach Club for dining and recreation
- Shuttles and town cars to non-Disney attractions

Best of Both Worlds #2: The Hilton at Downtown Disney
- Hilton owned and operated, Hilton-quality luxary
- Much cheaper than Disney's resorts and even Swan/Dolphin
- Walking distance to Downtown Disney Marketplace (good choice for teens)
- Has own busses to parks and can also take the Marketplace busses
- Still can get Extra Magic Hours benefits
- Located on the far south-eastern end of WDW area, very short drive to Orlando and Kissimmie

Note: It's possible to stay at Swan & Dolphin or Downtown Disney Hilton without renting a car. Simply pay $30/person for a round-trip Mears shuttle from Orlando airport, located near the baggage claims. Mears runs the Magical Express anyway.

This coming from someone whose done both a lot (just check my sig!)

 

[PixieDustandEeyore]

I dont know with the ASMu suite you get a kitchenette and such. But with the suite and room you'll have more than enough space really.
I think it will be more convenient for you to go and do disney world on site.
I doubt this will happen at your time but what if the park reaches capacity? As an offsiter you wont be able to get in(again I doubt it would for your time)
The EMH are wonderful, the true disney feeling is so unique and I find can't be replicated offsite. I can't stay offsite anymore it just isnt the same feeling. We tried once and ended up checking availability at disney after our first night.

Anyways stay onsite at least once!

 

[AirGoofy]

It is Disney property for us. Perhaps it would be a toss-up at the value resort, but once we stayed at CBR, we bought DVC and have never turned back. Staying on Disney Property is just that much more fun.

 

[jworkkul]

Some pros and cons---With staying off site you have to have your own transportation and with that the cost of gas and the time to get to the parks and back each day. Also you have to pay for parking for each day of the parks. If someone in your party gets tired and wants to go back to the hotal to rest, then either they will have to wait or everyone will have to go back. Definitely cheaper to stay in an off site accommodation. Food should be cheaper also.

With staying on site you have FREE, FREE, FREE transportation to everywhere in WDW at your disposal. Any member of your party can go back to the hotel at their convenience without bothering anyone else. More to do. NO PARKING FEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You have Disney 24/7.

So, the question is: what is important to you and your family.

 

[Mama Steph]

After reading all the replies and talking to dh about it again, we are going to stick with our plans and stay at ASMu. I like the idea of the extra space and "niceness" of the Sheraton but I would have to do a lot of research about the resort before I would feel comfortable staying. I have already done that research for onsite.
We've never gone and not had a car before so this will be a new experience for us. I plan on bring some snack things in my luggage and ordering for Garden grocer as well. I figure we will eat breakfast in the room or on the go most days.
I did look into renting points for this trip but costwise it made more sense to stay at a value with fd since we really want to do a lot of meals this time. Dining plan cost for our group would have been about $2800! That's so much more than we would ever pay for food for 10 days so we decided to go all out.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

After reading all the replies and talking to dh about it again, we are going to stick with our plans and stay at ASMu. I like the idea of the extra space and "niceness" of the Sheraton but I would have to do a lot of research about the resort before I would feel comfortable staying. I have already done that research for onsite.
We've never gone and not had a car before so this will be a new experience for us. I plan on bring some snack things in my luggage and ordering for Garden grocer as well. I figure we will eat breakfast in the room or on the go most days.
I did look into renting points for this trip but costwise it made more sense to stay at a value with fd since we really want to do a lot of meals this time. Dining plan cost for our group would have been about $2800! That's so much more than we would ever pay for food for 10 days so we decided to go all out.

I think you'l be happy with your decision to stay on-site.

For us, a trip to Disney is an "escape" from reality and we like the 24/7 immersion. Staying offsite is like going to the beach but staying 5 miles away IMHO. Yes, you can drive to the beach each day, but why?

We've stayed on-site each time with one "exception" - the Swan. Even though it was a Deluxe resort, it was our least favorite stay. We would have preferred to stay at a true Disney resort. I think it was because we were around so many conventioneers that it felt more like a business trip than a vacation.

 

[Tommy_B]

I find it interesting that you listed 'renting a car' as a bonus. That to me would be a negative.

I've stayed off-site three times because of conferences I was at.

With my families, we have always stayed on-site. I like to not have to think about driving and parking and all that for a week or ten days. I have no interest in dining off-site because there is no place off-site I can't get at home, or a reasonable substitute for.

It feels special on-site and I don't know how to quantify that or explain it. Even though I stayed at great, off-site resort hotels, the Hyatt Grand Cypress and Marriott Orlando World, they felt just like hotels anyplace else, nothing endearing or special about them.

The immersion of on-site feels like you are on vacation every minute you are awake.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

I find it interesting that you listed 'renting a car' as a bonus. That to me would be a negative.

I've stayed off-site three times because of conferences I was at.

With my families, we have always stayed on-site. I like to not have to think about driving and parking and all that for a week or ten days. I have no interest in dining off-site because there is no place off-site I can't get at home, or a reasonable substitute for.

It feels special on-site and I don't know how to quantify that or explain it. Even though I stayed at great, off-site resort hotels, the Hyatt Grand Cypress and Marriott Orlando World, they felt just like hotels anyplace else, nothing endearing or special about them.

The immersion of on-site feels like you are on vacation every minute you are awake.

It's funny because I agree with your post about off-site vs on-site hotels - off-site is just like being at a hotel anywhere else.

However, we actually find a rental car a "bonus" as well even though we stay on-site. Disney transportation actually stresses us out more than driving ourselves. We don't like the long lines waiting for a bus (we try to not wait more than 20 minutes for an attraction, but have found ourselves waiting 30+ minutes for a bus). We inevitably end up standing on the crowded buses and the buses are excrutiatingly slow when going to DTD or from resort to resort. We generally don't go offsite except for one visit to the Character Premier store, but we find having a car to be much less stressful. Like so many other topics, your mileage may vary.

 

[mkarizona]

We love riding the buses. For us, Disney transportation is part of the magic!

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

I've done various trips including off site, on site with no dining, on site with dining. From now on, barring any drastic changes, we will ALWAYS do on site with dining.

Fwiw, we started out off site, then went on site and never looked back. Off site will never be an option for us any more.