Windsor Hills has ruined me for Wdw resorts

[Pembo]

We stayed offsite this past June for the first time and in spite of all my worries, we loved it! The only thing I missed was AM EMH but we planned around all the EMH days and I found that I liked not getting to a park for an 8am opening.

We are staying offsite again in March. I thought maybe we would stay at a WDW resort if the discounts were good. But I just can't justify $900 in a hotel room vs $550 for a 3 br condo with a washer and dryer.

I don't really think we'll ever stay onsite again. Unless of course I win a trip...or someone else is paying.

 

[GingerJay]

I agree You just can't beat the space for the price- not to mention being able to park right outside your door! Loved it there

 

[TotoToo]

We stayed offsite this past June for the first time and in spite of all my worries, we loved it! The only thing I missed was AM EMH but we planned around all the EMH days and I found that I liked not getting to a park for an 8am opening.

We are staying offsite again in March. I thought maybe we would stay at a WDW resort if the discounts were good. But I just can't justify $900 in a hotel room vs $550 for a 3 br condo with a washer and dryer.

I don't really think we'll ever stay onsite again. Unless of course I win a trip...or someone else is paying.

No surprise. Once those that for whatever reasons have bought into the idea of "the magic" only happening with overpriced, on site stays try off site most realize they are paying way too much for nothing. In fact they are being shortchanged on unit size, quality and features. The parks are the same no matter where you stay (the few potential extra hours don't amount to much) and the value is in off site by a wide margin. Once you find it you are unlikely to go back to costly on site stays.

 

[mikehn]

Ive stay on and off site. I prefer off site myself

 

[twoplustwins]

totally agree! we are staying offsite for our next trip - and because we are, we can stay longer!

 

[ChickenCarlos]

What reliable site did you book your stay with Windsor from??

 

[kathy884]

I really agree with you. An offsite condo is just such a wonderful value. That's always my choice for a stay of a week or longer. Sometimes my husband has seminars at the Contemporary, so his company is paying for accomodations (And I do enjoy for a few days a deluxe Disney resort). But there is no way that I would pay the money for that with my vacation budget $s. I really like having the kitchen, washer and dryer, great little screened in balcony with table and chairs and great LR/DR family gathering place. Not having to eat all my meals out is HUGE to me.

 

[KellyWasHere]

Totally agree! This is our first off-site stay, at Windsor Hills, and I'm loving it! My only complaint is that the mattresses are on the cheap side, but I can just pay a litlle more next time for better quality there. Otherwise it is fantastic. We dropped my mom off at Beach Club yesterday, and took the bus to MK. Ugh, I forgot how much I hate riding the buses. Give me driving and a short tram trip any day of the week.

 

[Pembo]

What reliable site did you book your stay with Windsor from??

I used windsorhillsrent.com and put in a request and narrowed down my seach from there. Last year I used magicalvacationhomes.com and this year wdwhome.com.

 

[Trixieplus2]

Is it still cheaper to stay offsite if Disney is offering the free dining plan

 

[twoplustwins]

Is it still cheaper to stay offsite if Disney is offering the free dining plan

for my family it is still cheaper to stay offsite. to get free dining, you have to pay rack rate for the room and do the ticket package. the cheapest option for us to stay onsite is two rooms at a value (free QSDP dining). the cost for that is $2942. the cost for us to stay offsite plus tickets through Undercover Tourist is $1860. there is no way we would spend over $1000 in counter service meals.
I love having the option to eat at WDW or cook in the condo. we will also have a washer and dryer. the best part for us is being able to spread out. we will have a dining room table and a living room to hang out. in a value room, we would be so on top of each other.

 

[Trixieplus2]

for my family it is still cheaper to stay offsite. to get free dining, you have to pay rack rate for the room and do the ticket package. the cheapest option for us to stay onsite is two rooms at a value (free QSDP dining). the cost for that is $2942. the cost for us to stay offsite plus tickets through Undercover Tourist is $1860. there is no way we would spend over $1000 in counter service meals.
I love having the option to eat at WDW or cook in the condo. we will also have a washer and dryer. the best part for us is being able to spread out. we will have a dining room table and a living room to hang out. in a value room, we would be so on top of each other.

Would it be worth it for two adults and two little kids? We were looking at Pop in March with the Dining plan. WDW has to be the most complicated vacation ever LOL last March we did the movies resort because we got a girt card and our youngest was free since she was 2.

 

[Pembo]

For us a hotel room would be over $900 w/o tickets or the dining plan...a 3 br condo is costing us $550. We won't eat $450 worth of food. Plus I love the extra space and the washer/dryer means less luggage = less baggage fees.

In June, we ate breakfast at the condo (we are cereal people). We usually had lunch in the parks, took an afternoon break at the condo and ate dinner before going back to the park. Our "dinner" at the condo was usually sandwiches or a frozen pizza. It wasn't anything fancy but was inexpensive.

Trixie - price out the difference between a condo and a vacation package. Think about how much your family eats and run the numbers. You can look on allears.net for menus and prices at WDW.

I spent a lot of time deciding between on and offsite but I'm glad we made the decision to try offsite.

 

[crusoe2]

Would it be worth it for two adults and two little kids? We were looking at Pop in March with the Dining plan. WDW has to be the most complicated vacation ever LOL last March we did the movies resort because we got a girt card and our youngest was free since she was 2.

I guess this depends on how many nights you are staying and whether or not you are satisfied with the QSDP or would want to pay the extra to upgrade to the regular dining plan. We discovered that we could go during a free dining period and debated back and forth about onsite w/free dining vs less expensive accommodations off site. After crunching the numbers, we realized that offsite would cost about $1500 less - and that's for a 3 bedroom, 3 bath townhouse with our own splash pool, 7 day parkhoppers, and parking. Granted we will have to pay for food out of that $1500 savings but I really don't think we'll spend that much on our meals. Especially since we like to eat some of our meals in - eating out for every single meal gets old to us.

We also have come to love the extra amenities we get offsite - more space, a parking spot right outside our front door, the full kitchen, etc. I've also come to love having our own washer and dryer. It's nice to be able to toss in a load of laundry before we head out in the morning and finish it up when we get back. In a hotel room, either the dirty (and sometimes smelly) laundry piles up or you gotta take time out from the parks to haul it over to the laundry room and wait your turn there.

 

[ChickenCarlos]

I used windsorhillsrent.com and put in a request and narrowed down my seach from there. Last year I used magicalvacationhomes.com and this year wdwhome.com.

Thanks, we just booked ours today, im looking forward to checking out the off-site properties finally

 

[Lucky4me]

ITA. A hotel room for more than two people is a nightmare for me.
A six bedroom house for eight people was heaven!

In a few years we'll be snowbirds and Windsor Hills is my first choice.

 

[kathy884]

Cost of a value with free dining and no car rental vs. an offsite two bedroom condo and eating some meals in and some out and an inexpensive car are going to be pretty close with the offsite condo probably being a bit more. So bottom line is really what you prefer and think of as a better value vs. cost alone. The space, not having to eat all my meals out are huge to me and make for a much more relaxing vacation. For a short stay, either is appealing, but for me with a week stay or longer, give me the condo. I think, though, it's very much a personal preference thing.

 

[englishteacha]

The only time I stayed onsite at WDW was in 1990 at Fort Wilderness in the family pop up camper. (I was 10) As an adult, we've always stayed offsite. The last 3 Orlando trips we took we rented a 3 bedroom condo. I've loved having a washer/dryer, a fridge, and plenty of space to spread out. Our rate was between $50-60 a night. Even a value room was more than that. There are only 2 of us, and when we've stayed other places in a hotel room, I find that I feel very confined after a day or two.

 

[munchkies_mom]

Another big fan of Windsor Hills!! Love love having so much room after a busy day! We get a single family home with our own pool - love it!!!

 

[dtum]

Can't wait for June and our trip to WH. Renting a 4-bed/4-bath house from Romancing the Mouse. GS loves Indiana Jones and his room has that theme. With our own private pool, i think it's going to be hard to get some of the adults away from the house and even to the park (going to US/IOA this time). Having our own kitchen and washer/dryer were two more reasons to rent a house. DH and I decided we will never stay on property again because onsite has so little to offer in their rooms.