Where to stay

One of the first tasks of planning your WDW vacation is choosing a hotel. What do they mean by Values, Moderates , Deluxes, On Site, Off Site, etc. ? All of these choices and descriptions can make your head spin. I’ll try my best to decipher WDW lodging for you here!

Staying on grounds has many pros and barely any cons in my opinion. Staying on grounds means staying at one of the WDW resort hotels that are on site at the WDW resort. When you choose and on site hotel , your experience is truly immersive. You also get to benefit from some magical extras such as extra magic hours. It is also easier to package your whole vacation in a neat little box. Our family books tickets and hotel on the WDW website and this allows us to pay in installments. It’s like a vacation on layaway. No interest, and as long as it is paid a month prior to your arrival, there is nothing to worry about! Another pro is that all of your transportation needs are provided for. There no need for rental cars as the Magical Express shuttles you from the airport to the hotel. Even your checked in luggage is sent directly to the hotel. Since your vacation package lies entirely in WDW you are also able to take advantage of promotions such as free dining. If a promotion begins after you book and it’s during your stay , simply call WDW or your agent (who will let you know of the promotion) and take advantage of it. There are so many other reasons for staying on-site! If you can think of more , please feel free to add them!

There are three types of on site options. The Values, Moderates and Deluxe Hotels.

Values

The value hotels (pop- pictured above and all stars hotels) are a less expensive way of enjoying staying on site. Kids LOVE it and so do I. Any lodging is magical when your inside the Disney bubble! Values are very active. There are no sit down restaurant of lounges. But hey, being that your staying on-site, you can go ahead , bit worry about driving or getting back too late and watch Disney legend Yee Haw Bob at the Riverside (a moderate hotel) or have some cocktails at Trader Sams at the Polynesian (a deluxe )