We are planning a trip to Disney in Florida. I have not been in 30 years. What are the pros and cons of staying in a Disney hotel such as the Pop Century vs. staying in an outside hotel?


All tips are appreciated. This will be our first big vacation in many years.

If you are going with small children stay on property.

When Our children were 4 & 7, my wife informed me we were going to Disney for vacation. She also informed me we were staying on the Disney property. I was beside myself. Why would anyone spend that kind of money, when they can stay off property for so much less?

I protested, but she would not budge, we were going to stay on Disney property.

She informed me I could go and be miserable, or I could go an enjoy it, but we were going, period.

We did not stay at the most or the least expensive option, it was somewhat middle of the road.

After that trip we returned with our children, four more times, always staying at a Disney resort.

After the first trip, I did not care if it was more expensive. I was a Disney convert. All the employees were friendly and helpful, throughout our entire stay.

For me, staying on the Disney property is the way to go. YMMV.

Just one older teen and my wife.

We stayed at the Polynesian when we went down this past year. It was great that we could board the monorail and go right to Magic Kingdom from the hotel. The transportation hub was within walking distance in order to travel to Epcot. I mention these conveniences because we had very little travel delays using the monorail system.

We did have to travel by bus in order to get to Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios and had no bad experiences with the busses when we needed to use them.

The only downfall I would see is the amount of people each mode of transportation offers. The busses do not hold that many passengers so you may need to wait for a couple to come and go before you can get on one.

agree - unless money is a HUGE issue - staying 'on property' offers many advantages that IMO are worth the added expense.

the sheer convenience to be able to hit the park multiple times per day after returning to the room for a rest is worth it to me.

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We are going back in Sept for our second trip as a family. I despise it...Wife loves it. Price difference can be big, but staying on property means you can take the free buses to the various properties. You can buy stuff and have it shipped back to your hotel. 2 years ago we stayed at Art of Animation. It's a "value" resort. Not sure where we are staying this year. I am really dreading the trip, but I will do my duty as a father and husband. My wife who has been to Disney many times has told me we will always stay on property.

We went several years ago with our young daughter. We stayed on the property at the All Star Sports Resort, one of the "value" properties. The room was decent and clean, but certainly not fancy. The convenience, however, was great. Free buses or shuttles to any of the parks, no fighting traffic or parking a mile away and having to walk. To me, staying on the Disney property is well worth the extra expense.

Still pretty easy to get over to Universal for a day?

IIRC, people staying on property get to enter the parks earlier than general admission folks, like an hour or two?

Another suggestion - the Swan and Dolphin hotels. On Disney property but run by Starwood / Westin / Marriott. We stayed a week there using our hotel points. Almost all of the benefits of staying at Disney hotels, but are a bit less expensive and a little more flexible.

quote:

Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
Still pretty easy to get over to Universal for a day?

It’s a short drive, not a big deal last trip, which was Oct 2016.

But, yeah..... unless you’re crashing with someone (free) or doing Airbnb because of a really large group together... I’d go for on property. Service is always great at every tier.

Are you flying or driving?. I'm going in September. Flying in (drive from the Pacific NW is a bit long). Usually I stay at the Shades of Green. SOG is a military run resort on Disney property just to the west of the Polynesian resort. It's for Active & Retired Military, but during January & September, a DD214 will get you in ( https://www.shadesofgreen.org/ ). It's priced between the "Value" & "Moderate" Disney resorts. You can get in the "Extra Magic Hours", but that's about it. It's an easy walk to the Polynesian resort to catch the monorail.

This September, however I'll be staying at the Disney Caribbean Beach Resort. When doing my research the addition advantages of staying in a Disney property are:
1. Free shuttle from the airport to the hotel & back.
2. Luggage delivery. They pick up your luggage from the airport & deliver to your room.
3. Advance "Fast Pass+" reservations. You can reserve a bypass of the lines for popular attractions.
4. Shopping. When you buy something at the park, you don't have to lug it around. They deliver it to your hotel for free.
5. You can charge meals & merchandise too your room. You swipe your room key, and enter a PIN.
6. As mentioned above, you can get in the "Extra Magic Hours". Depending on the park, either an hour early, or an extra 2 hours after the park closes.

I always build in a few "off" days with no park trips. You can get a shuttle to the car center, and rent a car from Alamo. I usually head off to the coast to the Kennedy Space Center for a day. Disney also has 4 quality golf courses on property.

I'll add, take one of the "backstage" tours. The way they handle massive everyday logistics is impressive.

Also WDW is the second largest US consumer of explosives. DOD is number 1

Stay on property.

Beat the daily traffic and enjoy the convenience of staying on the property. You’ll be more refreshed as well..

On property and get the meal plan. More food than we can eat. Bier Garden in Epcot for German food. Yak Yak in the Magic Kingdom for "Polynesian" type food. Both are on the meal plan.

For food, I recommend the "Restaurant Marrakesh" in the Moroccan pavilion at EPCOT. Lamb shanks & kebobs with mint tea. A little out of the way (at the very back of the pavilion). Tends not to be too crowded. Bonus: Belly Dancer.

Unless you are going with kids, avoid the "Character Dining" restaurant options.

Another on-property guy here. I've done both.

On a side note - seek out a Dole Whip. As I understand it, there are only two places that have them...one in Magic K and one in Animal K.


Rick

+1 for in the park. And if you can afford it a side trip to discovery cove is worth every penny if you want to swim with a dolphin and more i had more fun thare open bar https://discoverycove.com/orla...b&utm_medium=organic

Stay on property.