Comparing hotels near Disney World with Disney hotels.
You need a lot of information to compare hotels near Disney World with the Disney World hotels.
Dad's ready to help.
Choosing a hotel for your Disney World vacation is the most important choice you’ll make. Your hotel is the place where you’ll spend the most time during your vacation. As the old knight in Indiana Jones said "Choose wisely."
There are thousands (yes, thousands) of hotels in the Orlando area. This makes it difficult to chose one of the hotels near Disney World.
The first decision is whether to stay in a Disney hotel or to stay somewhere outside Disney World.
When Disney opened the All Star Resorts it became affordable for almost anyone to stay on site. Disney even runs specials during the year where rooms are priced as low as $82.00 per night. You can’t beat that.
Here are some of the perks you can enjoy when staying in a Disney Resort -
Mickey Mouse wake-up calls - Mickey, or one of his friends will call you and wake you up.
Disney 24 hours per day - immerse yourself in all Disney all the time.
Free Disney Transportation - Disney will transport you to and from the parks and other Disney destinations, including the airport with Disney's Magical Express.
Beautifully themes - Disney Hotels are beautifully themed and maintained.
Disney labeled soap and shampoo - Each room comes with Disney labeled personal products. Stock up.
Short commutes to the parks - you don't have to fight traffic.
Package delivery to your room - buy stuff and have it delivered right to your room.
Charging privileges to your room - use your room key like a credit card.
Extra Magic Hours - get in to the parks before or after they close to other guests.
Guaranteed entry to the parks - on very busy days Disney Hotel guests are allowed in to the parks when the general public is restricted.
Disney Dining Plan - as a Disney Resort guest, you can add the Disney Dining Plan to your stay.
Never say Dad isn't fair and balanced. There are some drawbacks to staying in a Disney Hotel. Here are a few -
All Disney 24 hours a day - can get a little overwhelming for some
Food cost - food is more expensive inside "The World"
Lack of restaurant choice - Yes, WDW has over 400 restaurants, but sometimes you just need a McDonalds
Price - Disney Hotels are more expensive
Limited availability - At Disney World there are only 25 or so Disney area hotels and 24,000 rooms. Sometimes they sell out, especially the lower priced rooms.
Lack of discounts - Unlike other hotel chains, Disney doesn't routinely discount their rooms. No senior discounts.
Room - A comparably priced non-Disney hotel room will usually be larger than it's Disney counterpart.
There are some really nice hotels near Disney World that are actually located inside Disney World that aren't owned by Disney. You can make reservations for these hotels through Disney's Travel Company, but you won't get all of the "extras" Disney hotels guests are eligible for, you'll get some of them, but not all.
Non-Disney hotels on the Disney World property include the Swan and Dolphin hotels at the Boardwalk. Also all of the Downtown Disney hotels are considered to be inside of Disney property. Some of the Downtown Disney hotels are not real convenient to Downtown Disney, but they are still technically within the boundaries.
Downtown Disney Hotels -
DoubleTree
Hilton
Buena Vista Palace Spa
Holiday Inn
Regal Sun Resort
Royal Plaza
Best Western
Here's the good things about staying in the non-Disney hotels on Disney World property -
Good prices for good rooms - These hotels are typically cheaper than the Disney counterparts. The rooms are bigger and better equipped.
Free parking and easy access to Disney Transportation - most of these hotels have convenient access to Disney Transportation
Rewards - If you are a member you can earn and use rewards points at some of these hotels. For frequent travelers this is a big plus. (With HIlton Honors, you can even get park tickets with points. Lots of points. Yep, Mrs. Mom, just another 75 nights and we'll have a free vacation.)
There are some drawbacks to staying in the non-Disney hotels.
Drawbacks include -
Dated/older hotels - Some of the Downtown Disney hotels are in need of a facelift. A few have just gone through remodeling and are in good shape, but most are sorta run down.
Some of the perks, such as the Dining Plan and Magical Express aren't available.
Transportation - Bus service from the Downtown Disney hotels is somewhat limited compared with Disney Resort counterparts.
Staying at non-Disney hotels near Disney World can be a money saving experience.
Staying at a hotel near Disney World
If you do a search for hotels in Lake Buena Vista (the city nearest Disney World) you'll come up with 438 choices. That’s incredible. That doesn’t even count rental houses, small mom-and-pop hotels, and non-participating hotels like Motel 6. It’s absolutely amazing how many accommodation choices you have in the Orlando area.
There are some real advantages to staying outside “The World”. You have greater access to restaurant choices, entertainment options (other than Disney), and you a wider variety of hotels to choose from. But with those advantages come some disadvantages. The commute from your hotel to the parks can be annoying.
Here are some of the pros of staying at one of the hotels near Disney World -
More choices/options - with thousands to choose from you can find something that fits any family. Hotels range from cheap to houses that will sleep 20.
Easier access to more restaurants and more affordable restaurants - being outside "The World" you can go to any of the hundreds of restaurants around Orlando.
Closer to shopping - there is lots of shopping outside "The World" including a nice outlet mall just down the road.
Not overwhelmed by all Disney all the time - all Disney all the time can get on your nerves after a while (sorry Uncle Walt).
Better TV options - the Disney Hotels mainly show Disney affiliated channels.
Can be cheaper - more affordable accommodations can be found than Disney's overpriced hotels. But make sure you figure in the price of commuting and parking.
More discounts available - most hotel chains have some kind of promotion going almost all the time.
Frequent flyer/guest points - Disney Hotels don't qualify for any frequent guest programs.
Some of the cons of staying offsite -
I-4 (traffic) - getting into Disney World can sometimes be a little nerve wracking.
You don’t have access to Disney’s amenities - things like Extra Magic Hour and free parking, Disney Dining Plans are only available to Disney Hotel guests.
Not real sure of the quality of the hotel - unless you've stayed there recently, the quality of your hotel can be questionable. Even some of the name chains have problems.
Long commute to and from the parks, not easy to slip out for a nap or emergency
On very busy days, Disney closes the parks to outside guests - and guests staying at hotels near Disney World are excluded from entrance.
Choosing one of the hotels near Disney World
There are hundreds of hotels near Disney World that you can choose from. Here are just a few that Dad recommends. (Clicking on the links will take you to a site for more information and prices.)
Given a choice our family chooses to stay in Disney hotels. We love the ambience, the cleanliness, the convenience, and everything else Disney does to make the experience special. Before Disney built the Moderate and Value Resorts, we used to stay in hotels near Disney World but not on the property. We were always jealous of people that got to stay in those "rich Disney hotels".
So In Dad's Humble Opinion
If you are in Orlando to go to Walt Disney World and only Disney World, you should stay in a Disney Resort.
If you want to see more of Orlando than just Disney, stay at a hotel near Disney World.
"That's all I got to say about that." - Forest Gump
