Stayed offsite for the first time

[Beemitchcowski]

I have gone back and forth several times about staying on site vs off site. We really really love all the disney dining and we are avid disney diners, lol. We usually eat 3 meals a day (sit down meals)...I know a lot of people say thats a lot but we use that time to get away from the parks and just relax and have family time. My older son is on the spectrum so quick service places at Disney are just way over crowded and the process of ordering food and finding our own table is just way too much for him to handle. Anyways being able to make my ADR reservations at 180+10 is really a draw in for me. If it wasn't for that 1 little detail we would probably stay off site, lol. I mean I guess the way to get around that is book our reservation and make all our ADRs and then cancel our hotel reservations bc the reservations aren't linked to the resort reservations, but then I feel like thats cheating the system a bit and that just feels wrong, lol. I don't even really care that off site people can't make FPs until 30 days out either bc with my son being on the spectrum we usually get a DAS so I would just grab whatever FPs I could at the 30 day mark and then just use the DAS for whatever else we need it for.

Personally I would rather stay off site than on site. Yes we aren't in the Disney bubble, but some of the off site hotels have better rooms and pools areas than some of the deluxe resorts because you get more space. Although on our next trip we are going to see about renting DVC points...that might be cheaper than staying regularly through Disney...Not sure what we are going to end up doing for our trip in 2018. My MIL is coming with us and I would like us all to be able to stay together, but 1 studio room is just not big enough for everyone.

I have gone back and forth several times about staying on site vs off site. We really really love all the disney dining and we are avid disney diners, lol. We usually eat 3 meals a day (sit down meals)...I know a lot of people say thats a lot but we use that time to get away from the parks and just relax and have family time. My older son is on the spectrum so quick service places at Disney are just way over crowded and the process of ordering food and finding our own table is just way too much for him to handle. Anyways being able to make my ADR reservations at 180+10 is really a draw in for me. If it wasn't for that 1 little detail we would probably stay off site, lol. I mean I guess the way to get around that is book our reservation and make all our ADRs and then cancel our hotel reservations bc the reservations aren't linked to the resort reservations, but then I feel like thats cheating the system a bit and that just feels wrong, lol. I don't even really care that off site people can't make FPs until 30 days out either bc with my son being on the spectrum we usually get a DAS so I would just grab whatever FPs I could at the 30 day mark and then just use the DAS for whatever else we need it for.

Personally I would rather stay off site than on site. Yes we aren't in the Disney bubble, but some of the off site hotels have better rooms and pools areas than some of the deluxe resorts because you get more space. Although on our next trip we are going to see about renting DVC points...that might be cheaper than staying regularly through Disney...Not sure what we are going to end up doing for our trip in 2018. My MIL is coming with us and I would like us all to be able to stay together, but 1 studio room is just not big enough for everyone.

I have gone back and forth several times about staying on site vs off site. We really really love all the disney dining and we are avid disney diners, lol. We usually eat 3 meals a day (sit down meals)...I know a lot of people say thats a lot but we use that time to get away from the parks and just relax and have family time. My older son is on the spectrum so quick service places at Disney are just way over crowded and the process of ordering food and finding our own table is just way too much for him to handle. Anyways being able to make my ADR reservations at 180+10 is really a draw in for me. If it wasn't for that 1 little detail we would probably stay off site, lol. I mean I guess the way to get around that is book our reservation and make all our ADRs and then cancel our hotel reservations bc the reservations aren't linked to the resort reservations, but then I feel like thats cheating the system a bit and that just feels wrong, lol. I don't even really care that off site people can't make FPs until 30 days out either bc with my son being on the spectrum we usually get a DAS so I would just grab whatever FPs I could at the 30 day mark and then just use the DAS for whatever else we need it for.

Personally I would rather stay off site than on site. Yes we aren't in the Disney bubble, but some of the off site hotels have better rooms and pools areas than some of the deluxe resorts because you get more space. Although on our next trip we are going to see about renting DVC points...that might be cheaper than staying regularly through Disney...Not sure what we are going to end up doing for our trip in 2018. My MIL is coming with us and I would like us all to be able to stay together, but 1 studio room is just not big enough for everyone.

I have a son on the spectrum as well. We stay at Bonnet Creek and really love it! The pools are great and we love having the extra space. We don't do as many sit down dining experiences in the parks due to price and I personally find it more relaxing to not have to worry about making it to a dining reservation all the time I do see though were quick service could be hectic.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

I have a son on the spectrum as well. We stay at Bonnet Creek and really love it! The pools are great and we love having the extra space. We don't do as many sit down dining experiences in the parks due to price and I personally find it more relaxing to not have to worry about making it to a dining reservation all the time I do see though were quick service could be hectic.

Yeah my son does better with a schedule so to be able to tell him exactly when we are eating and where we are eating at is helpful. I think also having the bigger rooms at Bonnet Creek and being able to stay in the same room as my MIL will be helpful as well. I know when we were originally planning to go in 2017 but ultimately had to cancel, my MIL was planning on staying at Pop and we were going to be at AKL and I was extremely nervous about how everyone was getting to where everyone needed to be at the same time. Plus I know my older son on the spectrum would not want to take time out of his day playing taxi service, lol. Anyways I think Bonnet Creek would better fit our needs but I have to wrap my around the FPs (only being able to make 7 days worth) and not being able to make dining plans for our entire stay. My husband still wants me to crunch numbers for the Disney Villas though bc he said if its not much savings its better to do Disney bc of the perks. Disney doesn't have 3 bedrooms but I think a 2 bedroom will be enough if we decide to go that route.