STAY ON PROPERTY

Are you planning a trip to Disney World? Great! Plenty of fun awaits you and your travel buddies. Before you get there, however, you'll need to make plans, including hotel reservations.

There is a dizzying array of lodging choices. You could choose to stay at one of the many Disney World hotels or off of the property. In almost every case, you'll find a cheaper nightly rate for comparable accommodations -- in some cases considerably cheaper -- away from Disney. But, you should consider overall costs, including car rental, gas, and parking, as well as the time and hassle it would take to travel between an off-property hotel and the Disney resort.

Also, consider the following perks when you determine the value of staying on site:

*Free Ground Transportation: Guests staying at Disney World hotels can board complimentary Disney's Magical Express buses at the Orlando Airport that take them directly to their resort. And they can avoid the baggage carousel since Disney delivers luggage directly to guests' hotel rooms. On the return trip, which is also free, guests can save time at the airport by checking their luggage and getting their boarding passes at their Disney hotel.

*Extra Theme Park Hours: Disney World hotel guests can jump-start their day by getting into select parks an hour before the general public. A lot of ground can be covered when the parks are less crowded. Also, parks remain open on certain evenings to resort guests up to three hours after closing to the general public.

*MyMagic+: Learn how to pre-plan your visit, minimize lines, and maximize fun by taking advantage of the free program. On-property hotel guests qualify for complimentary MagicBands that can store all of your park info. Also, guests staying at the resort's hotels get to make FastPass+ reservations up to 60 days in advance of their visit (in contrast, non-hotel visitors can make FastPass+ reservations up to 30 days in advance).

*Get the Full Disney Experience: By staying on property, you'll be completely immersed 24/7 in all things Disney. You'll get the Mouse's legendary service, and you'll be surrounded by the themes developed by the Imagineers for your hotel as well as at the parks (and everywhere else you go at the resort).

*Other Perks: Guests at Disney World hotels can use the monorails and other resort transportation (as can everyone else), purchase packages that include park tickets and discounted meals, and take advantage of free package delivery to their hotel rooms.

OK, you've decided to stay at the Disney World hotels. But, which one? Call us we can help you choose.

STAY NEAR-BY DISNEY

Here's the good things about staying in the non-Disney hotels on Disney World property -

Good prices for good rooms - These hotels are typically cheaper than the Disney counterparts. The rooms are bigger and better equipped.

Rewards - If you are a member you can earn and use rewards points at some of these hotels. For frequent travelers this is a big plus. (With HIlton Honors, you can even get park tickets with points. Lots of points. Yep, Mrs. Mom, just another 75 nights and we'll have a free vacation.)

Get away for a while - these hotels don't have hidden Mickey's in the carpets. They don't have Mickey Mouse wake up calls, it's not all Disney all the time.

Specials - these hotels tend to run more specials than Disney. You won't get Free Dining, but you might get a much better room at a cheaper price.

There are some drawbacks to staying in the non-Disney hotels.

Drawbacks include -

Quality - Some of the hotels close to WDW need a facelift. While they are usally pretty reliable, some need help in the quality department.

A couple of the hotels have some of the Disney Hotel perks available, but some of them don't have any. Be sure you know what you're giving up. (Free Dining is worth a lot of money.)

Transportation - Bus service from some of these hotels is somewhat limited compared with Disney Resort counterparts.

Disney Magic - these hotels don't have hidden Mickey's in the carpets. They don't have Mickey Mouse wake up calls, it's not all Disney all the time.

Staying at non-Disney hotels near Disney World can be a money saving experience. There are some other hotels on Disney property to check out.

STAY IN THE ORLANDO VICINITY