The BIG Disney decision every visitor has to make

If you have ever traveled to visit any Disney theme park in the world, you have had to make this one decision, especially when visiting Walt Disney World in Orlando.

You have made the choice to go to Disney, you are ready to buy your tickets, but first, you have to decide where to stay, and that comes with a big decision. Do you stay on or off Disney property?

It doesn’t seem like a huge problem, but once you dive deeper into the issue, it becomes perhaps the biggest decision you will make before you ever get there.

Staying on or off Disney property can make or ruin your Disney vacation

Staying on property

There is nothing better than a full immersion into Disney life. The on-property hotels offer that level of Disney magic and guest services you only get from them.

Staying on the property means you get the perks of being a Disney resort guest. Those perks come with free transportation to every park via bus, gondola, monorail, and even boat. No more worry about drinking too much or being too tired.

Guests also have the privilege of entering the parks 30 minutes early, before general admission and non-resort guests. There are also after-hours events open only to resort guests.

Planning to purchase a Lightning Lane or another pass? You will get to do so earlier than day ticket park guests as well. Each hotel has a restaurant on site, or at least most do, and the pools are typically 100% better than anything you will find outside of the Disney property.

Being a resort guest is fantastic, but it comes with a hefty price. For starters, those restaurants are very overpriced for what amounts to average at best flavors.

That nice room you are staying out of most of the day can run anywhere from $140.00 per night to more than $2,000. That transportation that takes you to and from the parks and Disney Springs? Yeah, as great as that is, after a long day of being under the stifling Florida heat and walking all day, you are crammed into that mode of transport with everyone else who is stinking, worn out, sweaty, and over it all.

Not to mention the crying babies and cranky kids. Ride them enough, and you are bound to see at least one kid spew all the ice cream, popcorn, and other sweets they have been downing all day.

The off-property option

While you won’t get all the perks Disney offers, do you really want to get up at 6:30 every morning to start getting ready for that 7:30 to 8:00 am rope drop? Probably not.

Food may not be as convenient, but you can rest assured you won’t be throwing $12.00 out of your pocket for a bland hamburger. Convenience is up to you, but outside of the park, you can find food everywhere, especially in Orlando.

The price of your hotel will also be considerably lower. Comparing value hotels off property to value hotels on property, you are still looking at nearly a $100.00 difference in some cases. Most Disney resort rooms are also not large enough for bigger families. You don’t want to have to reserve two rooms at those prices. Off-property, you can get a two-or three-bedroom room for around $150.00 if you are diligent in your exploration of rates.

Traffic is a pain, and there is no way around this. Off-property resorts will have to deal with I4 traffic on and off the freeway. The roads around Disney are hectic, congested, and in some cases under construction. That doesn’t mean there are no workarounds.

Several off-property resorts are a short five-minute drive away and don’t require you to jump on I-4 or any of the other congested roads. A quick Google Maps search can help you find back roads and much less-traveled streets.

We used to stay on the property, but after our family grew, it became far less convenient and much more expensive. Finding resorts that surround Disney while costing far less became more important.

What you decide to do is up to you, but don’t buy into the whole “You have to stay on property to get the best deal on your stay,” because you don’t.