I think you will be so busy that you really will only be in the room to sleep.

We liked our Disney hotel more than the actual theme parks.

What about the family suites at Art of Animation?

Thank you all for your advice. I think the thing is that to get the two (or more) room suite/villa/whatever that we really prefer while on vacation, we're going to need to spend at least $600/night to stay on the Disney property (or am I off base here? Just going off what I see on the Disney website) when an even bigger condo could be had for half the price (or less) just off property. But again, I do like the idea of being able to have some extra amenities for the parks and the themes of the hotels are super fun - I know my kids would LOVE the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, most of the hotels are run down. Those with refurbishments are poorly done. The food is horrific. Parks and hotels are spread out so you have to drive to the parks or take a shuttle.

Horrific!!!

Very credible, drama queen.

Last two times we stayed on property we got diarrhea multiple times (last time we learned and stopped eating there). The food was always cold and often had been sitting around a while. One server gave my child something they were allergic and refused to swap it out. It was very bizarre but her English was limited so I think that was the issue. I kept saying I need a new plate without that food and she kept refusing. I ended up not taking the plate. Another time, we waited 15 minutes at the pick up counter for pancakes. Our other food was completely cold and they kept passing over us. When I asked for our food, they said a few more minutes and gave us the wrong thing. We just put down all the food and left (they screamed we could have the wrong/cold food for free) and went to McDonalds. We never eat at McDonalds but the McDonalds on the Disney Property is clean, quick and always helpful. We were very thankful for it. We had a car so we'd go off property. At that point, why stay on property.

We stayed at the Coronado last time. They refurbished it with a quick paint job. They even painted the tiles in the tub instead of replacing them. The paint was peeling and looked terrible.

Yeah, you've posted here before. I remember your McDonalds story. Disney takes allergies very seriously so I flat out don't believe your story about them refusing to help you with that.

They may have in the past, but they put it on the plate after I was clear my child could not eat it. She barely spoke English so that was more the problem as its not a common allergy. Another staff member eventually intervened but would not make a new plate and just took it off so we refused the plate. We have lots of issues.

Corrected that for you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, most of the hotels are run down. Those with refurbishments are poorly done. The food is horrific. Parks and hotels are spread out so you have to drive to the parks or take a shuttle.

Horrific!!!

Very credible, drama queen.

Last two times we stayed on property we got diarrhea multiple times (last time we learned and stopped eating there). The food was always cold and often had been sitting around a while. One server gave my child something they were allergic and refused to swap it out. It was very bizarre but her English was limited so I think that was the issue. I kept saying I need a new plate without that food and she kept refusing. I ended up not taking the plate. Another time, we waited 15 minutes at the pick up counter for pancakes. Our other food was completely cold and they kept passing over us. When I asked for our food, they said a few more minutes and gave us the wrong thing. We just put down all the food and left (they screamed we could have the wrong/cold food for free) and went to McDonalds. We never eat at McDonalds but the McDonalds on the Disney Property is clean, quick and always helpful. We were very thankful for it. We had a car so we'd go off property. At that point, why stay on property.

We stayed at the Coronado last time. They refurbished it with a quick paint job. They even painted the tiles in the tub instead of replacing them. The paint was peeling and looked terrible.

Yeah, you've posted here before. I remember your McDonalds story. Disney takes allergies very seriously so I flat out don't believe your story about them refusing to help you with that.

They may have in the past, but they put it on the plate after I was clear my child could not eat it. She barely spoke English so that was more the problem as its not a common allergy. Another staff member eventually intervened but would not make a new plate and just took it off so we refused the plate. We've had lots of food issues.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you military or DOD ? Shades of green is on site and fantastic.

Its often more expensive than a moderate hotel depending on your rank/status. For us its always more expensive.

And it doesn't matter in this context bc op already said her family wouldn't qualify.

Anonymous wrote:Are you military or DOD ? Shades of green is on site and fantastic.

Its often more expensive than a moderate hotel depending on your rank/status. For us its always more expensive.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you military or DOD ? Shades of green is on site and fantastic.

Shades is the best deal going at WDW.

Unfortunately, no - we are not military or DOD.

I'm a Disney lover - go several times a year. We always rent a 2-3 bedroom condo - usually at Windsor Hills in Kissimmee thru VRBO. Highly recommend it. We usually pay $90-120/night depending on season.

I will never go back to a Disney hotel, other than location, they are just not all that and really $$$$. Plus I hate the Disney buses (crowded, and often long waits) so I rent a car and drive to the parks regardless of where I stay.

Anonymous wrote:Are you military or DOD ? Shades of green is on site and fantastic.

Shades is the best deal going at WDW.

I think it's worth it to stay on site (we did not but if we came back I'd spring for a room on the Monorail).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, most of the hotels are run down. Those with refurbishments are poorly done. The food is horrific. Parks and hotels are spread out so you have to drive to the parks or take a shuttle.

Horrific!!!

Very credible, drama queen.

Last two times we stayed on property we got diarrhea multiple times (last time we learned and stopped eating there). The food was always cold and often had been sitting around a while. One server gave my child something they were allergic and refused to swap it out. It was very bizarre but her English was limited so I think that was the issue. I kept saying I need a new plate without that food and she kept refusing. I ended up not taking the plate. Another time, we waited 15 minutes at the pick up counter for pancakes. Our other food was completely cold and they kept passing over us. When I asked for our food, they said a few more minutes and gave us the wrong thing. We just put down all the food and left (they screamed we could have the wrong/cold food for free) and went to McDonalds. We never eat at McDonalds but the McDonalds on the Disney Property is clean, quick and always helpful. We were very thankful for it. We had a car so we'd go off property. At that point, why stay on property.

We stayed at the Coronado last time. They refurbished it with a quick paint job. They even painted the tiles in the tub instead of replacing them. The paint was peeling and looked terrible.

Yeah, you've posted here before. I remember your McDonalds story. Disney takes allergies very seriously so I flat out don't believe your story about them refusing to help you with that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, most of the hotels are run down. Those with refurbishments are poorly done. The food is horrific. Parks and hotels are spread out so you have to drive to the parks or take a shuttle.

Horrific!!!

Very credible, drama queen.

Last two times we stayed on property we got diarrhea multiple times (last time we learned and stopped eating there). The food was always cold and often had been sitting around a while. One server gave my child something they were allergic and refused to swap it out. It was very bizarre but her English was limited so I think that was the issue. I kept saying I need a new plate without that food and she kept refusing. I ended up not taking the plate. Another time, we waited 15 minutes at the pick up counter for pancakes. Our other food was completely cold and they kept passing over us. When I asked for our food, they said a few more minutes and gave us the wrong thing. We just put down all the food and left (they screamed we could have the wrong/cold food for free) and went to McDonalds. We never eat at McDonalds but the McDonalds on the Disney Property is clean, quick and always helpful. We were very thankful for it. We had a car so we'd go off property. At that point, why stay on property.

We stayed at the Coronado last time. They refurbished it with a quick paint job. They even painted the tiles in the tub instead of replacing them. The paint was peeling and looked terrible.

Anonymous wrote:Consider Bay Lake Tower next to (and part of) the Contemporary. We had a suite there and had plenty of elbow room, which you might like if you all need to escape each other at the end of the day.

I don't want to sound nit-picky and like I'm arguing semantics--but if you were in Bay Lake Tower you were actually in a "villa" and not a "suite." The Contemporary has "suites" that are in that resort--they do not have a full kitchen or the laundry, but do have club level lounge access.

We have been to Disney many times and have done some on site stays and some off.
The only reason we have done off site is money. We have a large family and can not all fit in one standard room--suites are extremely expensive and Disney won't guarantee that if you book two rooms, that they will connect. They literally could assign you two rooms at opposite ends of your resort. So for our large family/small budget, off site was necessary.

If I was doing a "one and done" trip, I would absolutely stay on site--especially if your budget can easily accommodate it.

Suites in the resorts are very expensive--generally $1000+ per night.
Most of the "deluxe" resorts also have "villas" part of the timeshare program called "Disney Vacation Villas." These units can be a studio, 1 bedroom, 2 bedroom, or 3 bedroom villa. All but the studios have a full kitchen, living room, and laundry. If you are not a member, you can rent these one of two ways:

1) Book them through Disney.
2) Rent through a private owner
3) Rent through a Broker

Renting through a broker is less risky than going through a private owner (unless you personally know the owner, of course.) It is also a lot cheaper than going through Disney. However, you will not receive daily housekeeping. If you rent directly through Disney, you will receive the daily housekeeping.
We've decided to splurge this summer and have rented a 2 bedroom in the Saratoga Springs (one of the cheapest, and easiest to reserve) resort--we are doing it through Disney because the daily housekeeping is a must for me.