Hi, all. I'm a regular west-coast DLand girl, but am planning a first trip to DW with my extended family next October, 2008. My parents have a time-share at Orange Lakes, and we will probably have a rental car that we drive to the park daily. I saw on the MP DW info page that parking is $11, does that include in and out priveleges? This is a whole new world of planning to me!

As a side note - is that a ridiculous idea? Staying "off property"?

Jennie

Yes, the parking includes in-and-out rights, as well as rights to park at multiple parks in the same day (e.g., park at the TTC (parking lot for MK) in the morning, go back and take a break, then park at Epcot for the evening fun. You only have to pay for parking once).

I'm not a fan of staying offsite, but there are decent reasons for doing so - including 'prepaid' lodging. It's a different experience staying offsite (and not at all like staying offsite at DL), but that doesn't mean it's a BAD experience. I have a co-worker who's gone multiple times and stays offsite - with his 5 year old triplets. He gets a condo offsite, and I think some times one set of the Grandparents come with them, and there's plenty of room for everyone.

When you pay at the parking entrance they give you a pass that has the date in large numbers. Put this on the dashboard of the car. If you hop to another park you just flash the pass at that entrance to get in free. One fee per day, no matter how many times in and out.

As a side note - is that a ridiculous idea? Staying "off property"?
Here's my $0.02 about on-site vs off-site.

If your lodging off-site is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than a Disney resort, then certainly that's something to consider.

But personally, even if off-site were a bit cheaper even after considering the cost of renting a car, parking, tolls, etc, I'd still stay @ a Disney resort. The Walt Disney World resort all-encompassing experience is just so much different than DLR in Anaheim. If you stay @ a Disney resort, renting a car is not a necessity (there are differing opinions on this, but I'd much prefer someone else chauffer me around while I'm on vacation, rather than face all the driving, traffic, parking, etc hassles myself). You can take advantage of free transportation to/from the airport, as well as luggage handling via Disney's Magical Express. You have the opportunity to book the Disney Dining Plan if you stay @ a Disney resort, which (depending on your "dining habits") can save quite a bit of money on your food budget--and depending on the exact timing of your visit, you may even be able to book the Dining Plan for free.

The above are mostly "cost" issues, but to me it's more about the world-class vacation resort experience, and the all-encompassing Disney environment that exists on-site @ Walt Disney World. The first time we came to WDW with the kids, we really researched whether to stay off-site, or stay @ a Disney resort. We decided "Disney" and I could not imagine NOT staying @ a Disney resort now. :D

But here again, if your off-site lodging is free, or at a significantly reduced price, then that could change the issue a whole lot.

While I don't disagree with any of the above, there are a couple of important points. Since your parents "own" the timeshare, your lodging cost will be a big fat ZERO - very important. Also, even when staying on property, a lot of people (like me) also rent a car and drive from the airport. I'm not a big fan of the busses - I'd much rather control my own destiny and drive from the airport as well as to and from the parks. But even if you bring a car, if you stay on property your parking is free.

So there are a lot of variables, based on your own preferences. Seems that the big one in your case is pre-paid lodging, which kinda makes the decision right there. You're gonna have a blast even if you're off property. Be sure to take the time to visit a few of the resorts while you're there. This is especially easy in the Magic Kingdom area. Instead of taking the express monorail, take the hotel monorail and get off at the Poly, the Grand Floridian and especially the Contemporary and spend some time looking around. They're all resort destinations on their own.

Enjoy!

We have been to Disney several times on property. LOVE IT. However, a girlfriend was not using her time share Orange Lake one year and offered it to me. Jumped on it as it was dirt cheap. It was not that far from the parks. We drove everywhere, the parking was never a hassle. We park hopped and stayed late and went early. Saw parts of the park we had never seen as had never driven ourselfs in.

My kids loved the condo. We loved coming home to a washer and dryer as it rained heavy a lot of the time we were there. Shoes went in the dryer every night. We stocked our kitchen and had quick and easy food every night with out going out. We loved our stay. I would not stay off sight again unless I have the condo option. Then I would think long and hard about the pros and cons.

You will have a blast.

Wow! You all are terrific. I am so thankful for all of the great feedback! LONG LIVE MP!!!!! :D

The lodging will be FREE, so that is a huge factor. We will be flying, of course, but it sounds like all of the family (9 in all) will be able to stay in one condo. If we were going to have to "buy" another week, or rent another space, then I think we would volunteer to stay on property (wouldn't that be nice of us?). ;)

Dianna, thanks for the reassurance about Orange Lakes. I'm sure I'll be back often to get more tips and advice about WDW.

Thanks again!

Jennie