Pros and Cons of Staying at a Disney World Good Neighbor Hotel

After selecting your dates for your Disney World vacation, one of the next steps is to determine where to stay. Sometimes when your budget is on the lower end, you may weigh the option of staying on Disney property versus staying at an offsite location. While there are many benefits of staying in the Disney bubble, there are also many advantages of staying at a Good Neighbor Hotel. Let’s get into it!

Money Savings

Lower rates on rooms off Disney property are usually the biggest reason families opt to stay offsite. It is common to save anywhere from $50-200 off the duration of the hotel stay compared to staying on-site. You will also find any variation of quality of rooms, but if you opt to stay at a Disney World Good Neighbor Hotel, they are kept to Disney’s standards of service and amenities, so you can be confident that your hotel is a good choice!

More Variety of Rooms at More Cost-Effective Rates

You will find about any room you could possibly need on Disney property…2 queen beds, 5th sleepers, family suites, villas, etc. But these rooms come with a higher price tag. Staying offsite will get you the same room types, but at a lower cost. Have a large family? You can find 3-bedroom suites with a full kitchen and a washer/dryer for about the same price as staying at a moderate resort. Having the option to make some of your meals in your room will also allows you to save more money for experiences and souvenirs!

Free Food

Need I say more? Many of the Good Neighbor Hotels offer free breakfast, and some even offer an evening meal or appetizers that you can make into a meal. Since the dining plan was discontinued, people are looking for alternatives for a way to save money on meals that they may have gotten on free dining plan promotions previously, and being able to avoid paying for a meal or two each day is a great way to save! You can even put that savings toward one of the Enchanting Extras experiences or more souvenirs for your kids!

Park Shuttle

Some Good Neighbor Hotels also offer some variation of park shuttle. Some offer it once or twice per day, others more often. Some hotels offer it free of charge, while others charge a per person fee. If you are not driving to Orlando, you will definitely want to take this into consideration, so be sure to call the hotel you are considering, or ask your travel agent what they offer!

Many of the Good Neighbor Hotels are located within minutes of Disney World theme parks. Others are a bit further, so be sure to check the location and proximity of the parks. Some of

these are centrally located as well, so if you plan on visiting more than just Disney parks while in the Orlando area, be sure to check out a map to see distances between the hotel and other attractions in the area. Keep in mind too, that staying outside the Disney bubble can come at a cost as well. Let’s discuss some of the cons.

No Early Park Entry

Some of the Good Neighbor Hotels have the benefit of early park entry, but most do not. If getting that extra 30 minutes of park time and hitting up some of the rides that have longer wait times is important, be sure to know which offsite hotels offer the early park entry benefit and choose to stay at one of those. You can find the list of all hotels on Disney property and offsite that offer early park entry here.

Limited Park Shuttle

When staying on Disney property you have the convenience of continuous park transportation from one hour before park opening through one hour past park closing. Offsite hotels may offer park shuttles, but they do not run continuously. Some may offer one or two trips per day, and the evening return time is usually before the parks actually close, so you may miss out on valuable park time. Unless you are driving, this can be inconvenient and more expensive if you start using Uber or Lyft for rides back to your hotel when the parks close.

Hidden Costs

Unfortunately, while many offsite hotels offer a great savings over staying on Disney property, be aware of the potential hidden costs. You may have to pay for parking (Disney World Resort hotel guests get free parking at the resort they are staying at). A nightly resort fee may be charged. Shuttle services may be fee-based. And if you are planning to drive to the parks you will also pay a daily parking fee there as well. Be sure to inquire about these charges prior to your stay.

Before you make a decision, be sure to ask your travel agent for a cost comparison between staying on Disney property versus staying at a Good Neighbor Hotel. It is 100% doable to have an amazing vacation even when not staying on-site, but be sure to do your homework so you know you’re getting the most bang for your buck! Not working with a travel agent yet and want a quote for your next trip? Leave me a comment below or head to my form here to get started!