Have a few "budget" questions...

[tdmdt luv disney]

Hello. I am new here and have a few questions about how to save money. I am sure you have all mentioned this before, but now I need to know.
Is staying off site all that bad? I am finding that the prices are cheaper, but everyone I talk to says that the experience isn't the same. Is it worth it?
Also, the one hotel off site that I am checking out says shuttle service to all Disney parks as well as Sea World and Universal. Has anyone ever done that and did it go ok? Now that said, do I really need a rental car?
We would like to go for 10 days and I will have a 5yr ds, 3 1/2 dd, and a 1yr dd. Is it worth it for me to see Universal and Islands of Adventure?
Also, on another board, someone mentioned AP passes?? What are they and how do they work???

Thanks in advance for any information that you can lend me.

 

[Lewisc]

If you're staying off site make sure you get a rental car. Off site shuttles service are scheduled and can be limiting. You can save money by staying offsite. Not only are the hotel rates cheaper but you can usually find a place with a free breakfast and frequently a refrig and microwave. Some of the on site advantages (EE and E nights) are now gone.

 

[Dagny]

Hi and Welcome to the DIS!!!


You didn't mention where you were staying (or looking to stay) or the prices you were quoted or the time of year you were looking. Depending on the time of year, Disney has special offers, Disney Club Discounts and AP discounts which may get you a better price in comparison to staying offsite. IMO, staying onsite is the only way to go! It really adds to our disney experience as a whole.

AP's are annual passes to Disney World. There are two kinds of AP's. Regular AP (which gets you unlimted access to all four parks) and the Premium AP which gives you access to the parks, water parks, etc. If you are going for 10 days, you should really consider the AP. I believe you "break even" on the 7th day. Our family uses one AP for two trips which really saves us $$$ on our second trip (ie. go in June in 2001 and May in 2002). In addition, Disney offers AP discounts (which can be substantial) at different hotels during different times of the year. This board (and the Resorts Board) is great about posting what discounts are currently available. I have obtained great AP discounts at the Deluxe hotels.

As far as Sea World, yes, I think your kids would really enjoy it. As far as Universal - I would definitely skip Islands of Adventure as most of the rides are for older kids (very little for toddlers) and Universal is questionnable. I don't believe we took our daughter there until she turned 6. The youngers two may not have much to do.

As far as a rental car goes, IMO, if you stay offsite, you will definitely need a car, especially with kids. They may get tired, need a nap, and you stuck waiting for the shuttle to arrive. If you stay onsite, then I think you would fine with the Disney transportation.

I hope this helps. Please feel free to ask any other questions you may have... we have tons of people here willing to help

 

[Judy from Boise]

I would even cut a few days off of my trip to stay in at least a Moderate Disney resort. You might find that staying 5 nights at a monorail resort would be the very best since you have such young children. Nothing beats being a short monorail ride to the magic Kingdom

 

[ditzoyd]

I geuss it depends on what you are looking for...

Disney hotel offer terrific themeing, and wonderful pools.

Off site offers less or no themeing, and usually typical pools.

You also really should rent a car if you are going to be offsite, the buses just dont run that often.

This said, Resort Themeing is really not that important to me, and I always rent a car. I lean towards staying offsite, ( I usually Priceline a Hotel)


You can get fablous discounts on Disney Resorts, and if this is your first time going to Disney, treat yourself. You can try mousesavers.com or my site, disneydiscounted.com for codes to get discounts on disney hotels.

Annual Passes pay for themselves typically after 7 days in the park IMO, and unless you are definately going to the water parks, or Pleasure Island, I would not purchase the more expensive ones. With an AP, you often get even better discounts. But, there is a downside to AP's....... they burn a hole in your pocket.... I mean it is EASY to justify another trip. I always start thinking, well, my admission is paid for, I can Priceline a room cheeply, I can drive down in 19 hours, and well then all I am spending is my spending money...... i do want to make sure I get my $$ from that AP I purchased 6months ago....



Have fun!

I am sure if you stay onsite, or off, your trip will be magical!

laura

 

[catwho]

If you are going budget and being tempted by the $39 a night hotel rooms. Be wary. Be very wary. We;ve stayed in the $39 a night hotels and we got $39 a night service and comfort. Thin walls, lots of noise (traffic and guest) poor operating plumbing, minimal housekeeping (IOW - gave us fresh towels on our bed and left one day didn't even pick up the dirty ones on the bathroom floor) The hotels felt, well, dirty. The carpets felt like they needed shampooing years ago and stuff just felt dingy and "old" For $59 a night you can currently get a room at a AS resort at Disney and the difference in cost would well make up the cost of renting a much needed car.

I personally am tired of $39 hotels. I'm movin' on up to the $49 hotels (ASmu Florida Resident rate in January!) LOL!

As far as the other non-Disney parks, I can't help you there. We go to do Disney and could easily fill a 10-day trip just at WDW! We buy annual passes (Florida resident again) and go every year 11 months apart (February one year January the next) so we get double the vacation for our tickets. We do have to drive almost 9 hours to get there, so it isn't like we go there every weekend (let alone every month)

 

[leebee]

We always stay off-site. It's the only way a trip to WDW even verges on being affordable. We just don't spend that much time in our room to make it worth all the extra $$$ that Disney charges. Also, the Disney rooms are SMALL. Try Comfort Suites Maingate East- it was fabulous. Go to www.choicehotels.com for rates, and don't be afraid to reserve a business or corporate rate (Jan. 2001 rate was $55/nt). Hotelkingdom.com sometimes has this hotel listed, fairly cheaply, also. Split room (half wall between br and lr areas) includes 2 queen beds and one double sofa bed, TV, dining area, kitchenette with microwave, sink and 4' tall fridge, spacious bathroom, TERRIFIC expanded continental b'fast (incls things like pancakes, waffles, yogurt, cereal, etc). I would definitely rent a car, regardless of where you stay. Just think about three VERY tired/excited kids, waiting in line for crowded busses, juggling 3 strollers and 3 kids on the crowded busses, maybe having to stand for the ride while juggling kids and strollers on busses and you'll see all the benefits of a rental car (try Dollar w/fvg code). I would say skip IofA, Universal is VERY questionable- kids are just too young, IMHO, to get too much out of these two parks. However, DEFINITELY go to Sea World. Lots of up-close things to see and do, good shows, etc. With kids the ages of yours, Sea World is the only "other" park I would consider. Have fun- but stay offsite and rent the car regardless!

 

[msr709]

I would go to IOA or Universal, in IOA the Seuss landing is mostly for toddlers (and you didn't mention when you want to go but Seuss landing is made up to look like Whoville in Xmas), and the Curious George area which the children seemed to enjoy. Universal has the Hanna Barbera ride, the Woody Woodpecker area and Barney show, ET ride I also saw a lot of Rugrats characters when I was there this past August. Also at Universal is Fievel playground area, which I know the toddlers also can enjoy for hours. SeaWorld on the other hand I think your kids should be a little older to enjoy, I personally love Seaworld because its very educational and I just LOVE sea mammals but I think the children should be at least 6 or 7 to be able to understand what is going on there.

I would also agree that staying onsite is advantageous but if you are going to rent a car with EE and Enites gone I would definitely go off-site especially if budget is a big concern. JMHO. But whatever you decide to do I hope you have a wonderful vacation, with 3 little ones I'm sure you and your wife are due for one! LOL. Have a great time with whatever you decide.

 

[chells]

Always stay offsite, but budget but also because there is so much more to central Florida/Orlando than just Disney.

Typically, we will do 3-4 days of Disney parks, 1-2 days of Universal/IOA, and 2-3 days Other.

If you don't mind a regular hotel room, you can use Priceline for 3 and 4 stars. We stayed at the Hyatt last Feb. for $41 a night, and added a refrigerator for $50 for the week.

We've also stayed at suite hotels for about less than the cost at the least expensive disney rooms.

We rent a car through Priceline, last Feb was $16 a day for a full size through National, used Emerald Aisle and got an SUV.

We get all the theming at the parks. There are some very nice hotels with good pools, good kids programs, etc. Maybe look at a kidsuite at the Holiday Inn? Our son loves those.

Our son is now 7, but at 4, 5 and 6 he loved Universal Studios AND IOA. He has no fear, anything he is tall enough for, he wants to go on. They have a small size roller coaster at IOA that he must have ridden 10 times last time we went. With Dr. Suess, Jurassic Park, etc. IOA is great for him. He also can't get enough of Back to the Future, or Men in Black at Universal.

My DH is a beach kind of guy. When in Florida, we have to spend a few nights at a beach, so we always end the vacation outside of Orlando, we've done St. Pete, Clearwater, and Cocoa Beach. I'm not as addicted to the ocean as he, but must admit, when in Orlando we run, run, run, full long days.... it's nice to spend the last 2 days just slowing down, sitting by the ocean, etc.

I know I am an "outsider" with my opinions, but even if DH would approve of staying on-site (he won't, he get's disney overload) I can't see wasting the money. When EE and e-nights are in affect, those are the parks we avoid, works out great.

 

[ceecee]

We've done both....now, we always stay on site. With a young daughter it is easier and faster to go to the room for a rest. We stayed at All Stars lthis yr and will again next, because my 6 year old is into Dalmation everything. We loved the wake up calls and being totally Disney the entire trip AND we love not having to drive and park.

 

[Lisa P.]

Dawn, onsite & offsite each have advantages and we enjoy both. Consider putting together a budget with price quotes for each way and see what works best for your situation. Onsite, you don't need a car if you will be using Disney transport and only visiting Disney parks. Don't stay offsite without a car. With a car offsite, you could save on food, room and have a fabulous trip. Why pay Disney hotel prices if you're visiting Sea World or Universal??? It's not the same experience onsite as offsite but you will find fans of each. We've done both many times and will continue to do both for various reasons.

Many young kids enjoy their hotel's pool most of all on a Florida trip. So consider that carefully. If you are traveling in winter, make sure there's a heated pool. Consider spending a day just at your hotel/resort to enjoy it - rest, go to a character meal or shop for souvenirs. The nicer the resort pool area and activities, the more you all will want to enjoy the resort. With the ages of your children, if you choose to stay offsite, consider a 1BR or 2BR villa or suite at a nice resort. During their nap or early bedtime, you'll appreciate the separate sleeping room. Consider a timeshare rental week from an owner (no sales tours) for part of your trip, perhaps adding a few days onsite to either end of the trip. We've done this and it's a great alternative!

Personally, I wouldn't bother with the Universal parks until your children are older. There are rides they cannot ride and it's a very expensive admission for the sake of a few kid-friendly rides and a nice playground. JMHO. They won't understand a tremendous amount at Sea World, but most little kids love feeding the rays and seeing the shows and various sealife. Very enjoyable with kids. AND, if you get your one-day ticket validated, you may return for a second day free within a week. Nice for the evening shows and fireworks to end a nice day swimming at your resort pools.

Annual Passes (AP) are worthwhile if you would have paid for 7-8 days admissions to the Disney parks anyway. Unless you plan to return within a year, just get a Hopper pass. A Hopper Plus pass will give a bonus admission to a water park - fun! There are deals on those too... search the forum.

Hope this helped.

 

[bevvy5]

Also, although it's can be an awful word, consider renting a timeshare. Actually, if you check out www.skyauctions.com there are two bedroom units with full kitchen, washer dryer, usually two bathrooms, very nice, for about $200 a week. Or if you want something a little further into the future, try the link for Ready Set Go on SkyAuctions. Often the cheaper units are for low season, but Orlando has tons of timeshares and it's not hard to pick up a rental for about the cost of a decent hotel with way more room and you can cook a meal in your room.

But they don't offer shuttle services, so a car would be necessary. If anyone decides to go this route, be very wary of anyone from management calling up offering anything free or asking for a "maintenance meeting". It's usually a front to try to drag you into a sales presentation - no point in saving money on accomodation if you end up buying an expensive timeshare!!!

Bev

 

[DisGo2Girl]

Re: "Also, the one hotel off site that I am checking out says shuttle service to all Disney parks as well as Sea World and Universal. Has anyone ever done that and did it go ok?"

Last year we stayed at the beautiful Twin Towers Hotel directly across from Universal. The first day we walked over, but took the shuttle bus back. That worked fine; we were the first drop-off. The second day we took the bus over -- it took 45 minutes to get to Universal across the street --- because it was a SHUTTLE and it stopped at 4 other hotels in the area before going to Universal. We also found out that some of the other hotels on the route charged a fee for the shuttle.

Just something to think about.

 

[LKS]

We have stayed both on and off site. My husband is not a very big Disney fan, and he has said that for our trip next year, he doesn't want to go unless we stay at the Contemporary. We don't really care about theming and "magic", but the transportation via monorail, or walking to and from the Magic Kingdom can't be beat with three little kids. We always go back to the room sometime during the day to swim and/or nap. You can roll your stroller right on and off the monorail. It will make your vacation so much less stressfull.

Now, we are only doing WDW. Since you are staying 10 days and want to see other parks, you might give some thought to splitting your stay. There's not much advantage to paying for, say, the contemporary if you are going to SeaWorld (which is great for little kids). There would be no shuttle so you'd have to have a car or arrange transportation. Our family really likes the Holiday Inn Family Suites, which is not one of the cheapest hotels, but does include breakfast and it has a WONDERFUL zero-depth entry pool that my kids loved - not to mention that Mom and Dad get their own bedroom and don't have to go to sleep when the little ones do. We have stayed a couple of times at really, really cheap places and at this point, we'd rather just not go than stay in a horrible dump, and some of them are. Choose carefully and come back to the boards to get opinions on the exact off-site hotel you are considering.