Insisting on staying a hotel when we go to Disney World. Sister wants a holiday rental

[Moru]

My sister and I are best friends. We have young children who are similar ages. We are taking them to Disney World as a very special holiday next year. But we are sort of at an impasse. I do t want to stay in a holiday let as I can’t be arsed to sort out meals and don’t want to tidy up. Our husbands are hands on but it just seems too much. Sister thinks it would be more fun and easier to stay in a holiday let. She doesn’t want to eat out for every meal. I also know I will miss simpler, home cooked meals on day 7 but we can find work arounds ie making salads/sandwiches. I prefer the idea of hotel which is so much less hassle. Sister says she will find it claustrophobic. The hotels are family rooms with suites. We would get separate rooms. We could also play socialising in the evenings by ear. Spend time together and have a drink when we felt like it. Spend time away from each other if we are exhausted for e.g.

Who has the right idea?

I want a break too. I don’t want to even have to think about meals after 8 hours in the park.

I would opt for a villa every time.
Your children are very young and may struggle with the heat or become overwhelmed in the parks. An air conditioned villa can give them space and a break from people. Being stuck in one room with their whole family just sounds stressful.
When our children were young we never spent more than 4 hours in a park and so had to find other things to occupy them. There is also a lot more to do than just Disney/ Universal.
There main advantages of a villa for me were as follows:
A private pool. It just feels safer and you don't have to deal with older children / teens playing a bit rough or being loud (or their annoying parents).
If 1 child wanted to nap the others could still play in the pool or with the foosball/ pool table. We didn't all have to hang about the room waiting for them to wake up.
The adults could sit in the evening and have a drink/ chat or watch TV without worrying about waking the children.
A fully equipped kitchen with massive fridge freezer meant we could have loads of cold drinks/ ice-cream on tap.
You will can out no matter whether it is in resort restaurants or normal restaurants. There is a huge choice of restaurants out with the resorts. And if you don't feel like going out to eat just get something delivered via Uber eats.
We always rented a villa overlooking a lake. The amount of wildlife we saw around was amazing (including armadillo and baby boars as well as raccoons)

I’ve done both. I used to be very pro villa but last time we did a split stay with a Disney hotel and i regretted the villa! Disney hotel (yacht club) was incredible, we could walk to Epcot, quick boat ride to Hollywood studios and then buses to others. We could also walk to skylines which kids loved!

our room had a balcony so we sat out there for a quick drink but we were so shattered we barely did. The pool area was unreal and lots of eating options. We had a deli style cafe in the hotel that was perfect for quick bites.

I found that even though you’re only 10/15 mins away the driving and parking etc really added time on to the day. Plus after a long day at the park you would then have to cook etc in a villa made it really tiring. We also had issues with noise at our villas and glass by the pool but we have been unlucky!

We had an aparthotel in lake buena vista and had a supermarket opposite and a ton of restaurants so we managed fine without a car. BUT WE DIDNT NEED CARSEATS! Your DC will need car seats so Ubers aren’t an option.

Onsite is great but apartments are £££.

A holiday let is much better than a hotel room. More room and you can still eat out as much as you like.

There are pros and cons to both.
Staying in a Disney hotel is a lovely immersive experience for DC, but much more frenetic for adults. It's also much more expensive than a villa with far less accommodation for your money. The transport saves on car hire/parking costs (high!) but can be a faff. You will still have meal issues as the park and resturant foods are not the best, and are quite repetitive, plus more expensive than off site restaurants, and no option to self cater for a change.
Villas are gorgeous, luxurious with private pools for less money. But you're 'outside the magic' and won't get Disney guests benefits. You will probably have to go to the park all day rather than break it up by nipping back to your hotel in the heat of the day. Your dining options are broader.
Tbh, I couldn't really call it, as the two experiences are different but imo equally good. I guess it comes down to whether you want full on Disney or a retreat to relax in.

I am 100% apartment but seem to be in a minority

Have you costed up the difference between staying on site and offsite?

Parking is $35 per car per day.
Rental fees
Can't just nip back to the pool

Realistically you're only going to socialise all together in the evening in the holiday let or someone needs to be home with the kids

In your position, I'd go for a hotel room that was more of an apartment, with kitchen amenities, with kids who have jet lag, you kind of want to have the option of kitchen amenities, and not just a sink and a small fridge. Especially with Orlando being much less 24 hours than it was pre covid.

If you can afford it, absolutely stay at Beach Club or Yacht Club. The pool is amazing for little ones, it's walking distance from Epcot and Boardwalk and a huge amount of restaurants. Your kids will love the beach. Plenty of areas to chill out that aren't your room. Little arcade/games room.
Stayed there twice. First time our DD was 4.

I too think a condo type set up could suit you both.

When we went to Disney we stayed in a huge 3 bed apartment on a complex with a pool, bar and restaurant. The kitchen was fully equipped so we could have simple breakfasts at home before heading out and there was a huge supermarket up the road as well as numerous restaurants to choose from. Great to have separate rooms so everyone could go to bed when they wanted to without being disturbed and the restaurant on the complex was good.

Some days we ate a meal at the parks and just had snacks at night.

Weve been 3 times and its villa all the way for us. Lots of space for everyone. You can properly relax. And the kids just love the pool. We never cook at the villa. We eat out or order in. Highly recommend Emerald Island or Windsor Hills.

Having been several times when our children were little, I’m with your sister! It’s much easier and more relaxing in a house with a pool and much nicer to cook sometimes than have to go to the hotel restaurant each time. We would alternate park days with pool/chilling/beach/shopping so lie ins and lazy breakfasts on the latter days were great. It’s so hectic at the parks, coming back to a nice peaceful house is lovely and you can enjoy your evenings more when the kids are upstairs in bed. So much better having your own pool. It’s personal preference though obviously so hopefully you can come up with a compromise.

Hotels mean considerable shorter transit times to the park but I would always choose a house so I don't have to deal with the enforced disneyisms, the Muzak, other people, and overeating 24/7
How long are you going for? Is there an option to have a hotel while you focus on the parks then a week in a house to chill?

We’ve been twice and stayed in Davenport , both times in a villa. Loads easier and cheaper. I can count on one hand the amount of times i actually cooked. We bought cereals for breakfast , fruit etc and ate out most of the time as it’s relatively cheap. Last time we went was 2019 so don’t know what it’s like now for prices etc but it’s nice just having your own pool etc.

We've always stayed in villas before as a family, but I think if I was going to go back to do the parks again, the hotels do make more sense. Just need to pay for an uber to get to the hotel from the airport and then the park buses are free. You could fill up with a good breakfast in the mornings and then just have small snacks until dinnertime.

Personally going to DisneyWorld is one of the few times I wouldn't consider a holiday let. The place is set up for people in hotels- the food is varied and not expensive. Finding supermarkets would have to be researched, groceries, particularly good quality ones are difficult and expensive to source in the US. Also may holiday rentals are not spacious, so assuming it will be less claustrophobic is dubious.
I agree with you days at Disney are usually long and tiring , the last thing you want to do when you get back is start to prep and cook.

The villas in Orlando are massive.

Onsite though it is much easier to pop home during the

neither are right or wrong - indeed I think it is a fairly even split between Villa/off site hotel and on site hotel people

because there are pro and cons for all of them
The issue here is what to do when you have one of both whst is the compromise

it is clear @Moru would not be happy in a Villa and I agree with her so what can be found to compromise and that really depends on budget - I mean the 3 bed Grand Floridian Villas are a sight to behold but not cost effective!

at the very least @Moru do try the kitchen sink at Beach Club 🍨😎

Not sure if they exist but can you not do a villa in a resort so you have the option of eating at the complex if you want - and cook there also?

I think I'd probably go for a villa with kids that age. That's very small, and a villa gives you more space to spread out, and you won't have to worry about disturbing neighbours etc. Most of these places come with a pool as well, which is great entertainment for kids, and much less hassle than traipsing down to the hotel pool with all your gear.
Kids that age also aren't going to want hotel food every day. They'll want simple stuff, the same as they have at home.

They do exist - we are staying at one there Disney do a whole timeshare scheme DVC at the Moderate and Deluxe level resorts including some amazing treehouses

but they are getting stricter with renting and more importantly it isn’t cheap!

Everyone's answers are completely valid. For us it's an online disney hotel. With the perks such as early entry and the buses and also being able to go for a rest back at the hotel in the afternoon was invaluable. We've looked offsite and it's never really added up for us.

Its not a relaxing holiday so factoring in cooking and cleaning in a villa is a definite no. But friends and family love the villas and would never stay in a hotel nevermind onsite.

Your sister views are also very reasonable so I'd go for separate accommodation.

Definitely the villa option. We have done both and I’d never do hotel again