We've stayed at the Contemporary, Polynesian, Grand Floridian and All Stars - we never had a problem getting the monorail or the shuttle to All Stars, tehy were very prompt and easily available for return to the hotel for a break.

Are you driving there? We drove down to WDW and found that we were well served staying off-site on International Drive and driving to WDW daily. The drive wasn't bad, we always missed traffic, and we could come and go as we pleased. Of course, we rarely went back to our car as we were so preoccupied with everything at WDW.

OTOH, if you are taking a plane, the rental car costs completely obliterate any savings you might have by staying off-site. Might as well invest the rental car money into the hotel room. You won't use the car much anyway.

I've also stayed at the Contemporary, all three of the All Stars, the Pop Century, Yacht Club, Beach Club, and the Grand Floridian and I've never waited more than a couple of minutes for the shuttle.

Also, this is hogwash, """Many of the guidebooks recommend that you rent a car even if staying on site! Just to get from your hotel to the shuttle stops""".

The shuttle stops are always right outside the parks or right outside the hotels. I don't know where you would drive a car to.

I've stayed on and off property and I won't stay off property again. My experience has also been that the shuttles on-property are fast, easy to get to, and not crowded.

I have driven to WDW and stayed off-property twice and dealing with traffic and the expensive, enormous Disney parking lots every morning, noon, and night isn't a lot of fun.

And parking at the Magic Kingdom is a hassle. Walt wanted people to have the sense of leaving the real world behind so you park and then you have to board the monorail or the ferry to get to MK. This is fine in the off season but we had friends who, last June, had to wait 50 minutes just to get on the monorail. Then they had to go through the security check and the line to get into the park. The buses have designated lanes that take you right to the security/park entrance point.

Nope, not hogwash, it's called a difference of opinion. Don't forget that not all "on site" properties are considered equal. Others agree according to comments I've found:

“Our character breakfast at Cinderella's castle was at 8:12. We got to the bus stop at 7:05. The MK bus didn't come until 7:45. We got there just on time but we were worried. If I had known, I would have driven.”

“If you plan to rely on WDW transportation , be sure to give yourself 1 solid hour of transport time to get where ever you wish to go. More likely than not, it won't take nearly that long; but it just might! In recent months, WDW has been consolidating bus routes during the day. While this move is probably designed to save them money, it has not sat well with the guests who have gotten caught up in the roundabout travel.”

“Are you one of those folks that hates to wait for anything? If so, then rent a car !
The price of our rental car for a week was only about $30 more than just airport shuttles to and from Disney would have cost for our family of 5. And parking everywhere is free for Disney Hotel guests.”

“If you plan on going off-property to visit non-Disney attractions, you expect to visit different hotels for meals,you might want to consider passing up on Magical Express and renting a car. For example, if you are staying at All-Star Movies Resort and you want to dine at Boma, a quick drive in a rental car is considerably more convenient (and timesaving) than catching a Disney bus to Downtown Disney, then transferring for an Animal Kingdom Lodge bus (this would become more inconvenient when you are ready to go back to your hotel room late at night).”

“Even on-property, consider renting a car. Disney transportation options are more than adequate. However, quick exits are often easier for both baby and parents.Bus rides can be very long. Holding exhausted children, bags, and dealing with strollers, while hot and sweaty is not very fun.”

OK, I guess I misread your statement. I thought you said:

"Many of the guidebooks recommend that you rent a car even if staying on site! Just to get from your hotel to the shuttle stops".

I thought that meant you would drive from your hotel to the shuttle stop. I guess either I'm misreading, or I'm just not able to intrepret what that statement means.

It make sense if you explain the reasoning around renting a car while staying on Disney property but just to make a blanket statement that: """Many of the guidebooks recommend that you rent a car even if staying on site! Just to get from your hotel to the shuttle stops""" is ridiculous.

I can't count how many times I've stayed on Disney property and have never had a problem waiting on shuttles, boats, or monorails.

JeriannG --
You've received more than enough advice here, but I must chime in and urge you to *stay on site!* Why?

1. Your children's ages - They really are of an age where the fun amenities of a Disney resort will add to their experience.

2. Ease of transportation - The shuttle system makes getting to and from the resorts supremely easy. I've stayed on site countless times, and the busses are quick, clean and efficient.

IMO, the benefits of staying onsite far outweigh the minor savings of staying offsite. The All-Star resorts are affordable, and if you factor the cost of a rental car and parking (should you stay off site), plus the time expended driving to and from the resorts and searching for parking -- not to mention the frustration of traffic (especially on International Drive) and navigation, it more than evens out.

Also second the the recommendation that you check disboards.com for common-sense advice on how to save $.

while considering an on-property hotel, look at its location in the whole park....some hotels are near MK, others EPCOT, and others MGM,etc. I have always liked being walking distance to one that I liked and might prefer in the evening when they are having those later nights for resort guests only. Personally I like EPCOT/World Showcase, so the hotels on the Boardwalk are walking distance and the "resort park entrance" there is in the middle of the 2 so you bypass some excess walking. Most resort park entrances are located in great locations that save time and avoid crowds. Also the boat rides to MGM, etc are a great alternative and not used as much as the buses.
Have fun!

We've been to WDW 6 times. In our experience, we've had one long wait for the shuttle each trip...a time where we're left standing at the shuttle stop wondering what happened to the shuttle??? However, we have driven to the parks several times (usually because we areheaded to the airport from the park, and no neeed to go back to the hotel). It is always faster and easier to take the shuttle even factoring in the "once a trip" wait.

Comments such as the person missing their princess breakfast are the exception, not the rule. Of course, they are upset because they experienced the occasional glitch in the system, so they post their comments.

I stayed off property and it was great. I think I stayed at a Days Inn. Check www.biddingfortravel.com. I also suggest getting a copy of the "Unofficial Guide to Disney World."