On or off site

[mlucas1974]

Hi everyone,

We are planning our first trip to DLP hopefully at Christmas this year. We have been to WDW 4 times and always stay at an on site hotel as we absolutely love being in the Disney bubble.

I am wondering if we would feel the same in DLP and it would be worth the extra money, or whether the nearby hotels are almost as good?

Your opinions would be appreciated

Thank you

[HFJohnson]

I would go for onsite if you can, like you say it's great to stay in the bubble and all of the Disney hotels are in walking distance of the parks so you don't have to worry about transport.

If you do want to look at offsite though I would recommend the L'Elysee in Val d'Europe - its a lovely hotel (better standard for the money that the Disney hotels TBH) and it's ideally situated for the RER station (DLP is just a couple of minutes away) and the shopping centre.

Personally I wouldn't want to stay in any of the offsite hotels where you rely on getting a bus to and from the parks as they can get so busy.

[mickeyismybff]

I agree with the above. If you can manage on-site, then you can walk everywhere and never need to worry about cramming into a bus. (If a 15 minute walk on top of a park day is a challenge, there are buses that will take you to on site hotels too.) Walking everywhere is our preference and it makes it easy to rope drop the park and get the most from the earlier opening time for hotel guests and APs.

We have passes so occasionally do a bargain basement trip by staying offsite in super no-frills accommodation and just max out our park time and use the hotel room purely for bed and shower. It’s harder to get there nice and early and we’ve ended up taking an Uber rather than play the game of how reliable will the bus be. If you stay offsite, investigate the hotels you could get to by the train stop rather than the bus perhaps or price an Uber into your budget and see if it is still a winner for you.

[Privateer]

+1 for staying on-site if you love being in the Disney bubble.

My wife and I have visited DLP three times now. The first and second time we stayed off-site in the Ibis Hôtel (Val d'Europe) which is a budget hotel that was easy to get to walking 100 metres from the train station and also for driving to. As it was a holiday it was fun to take the train from DLP back to Val d'Europe (only a 5 minute journey).

However, on the third trip we drove to and stayed at the Disneyland Hotel and that experience was out of this world. Ok, we stayed in Castle Club so we went from the low to the very high but the experience was worth it for us.

I think that it all boils down to your own perceived value (of Disney magic experience) for money.

[Bondy007]

Onsite all the way for me. Newport Bay, Sequioia Lodge both very nice, SL being our favourite. Onsite has that familiar feel like in WDW, it’s nice to pop back to the hotel for a swim in the afternoon then head back into a park later until closing. We’re staying in Disneyland Hotel next year so thinking that will be a whole new experience of onsite...

[Buzz242]

We've stayed both on and offsite and enjoyed them all. The L'Elysee at Val de Europe was excellent and we would definitely stay there again, it was a short train or bus ride to the parks. As previous people have said all of the Disney hotels are a short walk to the parks or you can use the shuttle bus. We have stayed at the Cheyenne which is Toy Story themed and the rooms were comfy and reasonably spacious for a budget hotel. Our favourite is the Disneyland hotel, we stayed there when we went during the winter season. It was so handy to pop back for a rest and to warm up on the colder days.

[kk20]

Onsite then I would go for disney hotels and not the partner ones. This is down to transportation. Partner hotels are just a bit too far to walk in the evening (after long days in the park), the partner hotel shuttle bus is shared between all the partner hotels - manic at closing time and opening time). Offsite the val d europe is easily accessible by rer(a couple of eu each) or uber (about 7 to 9eu). We have stopped in the Sejours Et Affaires (cheap apartment with bedrooms and kitchenette) and residhome val d europe (next to RER entrance, bedrooms kitchenette).

Sequoia is a great middle ground hotel with nice (but cold) pool. Newport bay is the only hotel onsite ive never been to. New york was seriously tired when we went so will probably be nice now. Disneyland hotel is obviously a favourite but pricey. Cheyenne has good theming and is a nice 15 min walk when the weather is pleasant. Santa fe was not a good trip for us as it was in the old 'bun fight' breakfast era and we ended up with chickenpox on that trip...

What we have done in the past is book explorers or dream castle etc on our 'landing day' then used hotel facilities and village but not gone into disney, then move to disney hotel first thing in the morning to maximise park time. Since this is your first time at DLP then you coild combine the 'night before' with a buffalo bill show perhaps. Between a pool, buffalo bills and the village then you have an afternoon/evening of entertainment outside the park.

[mrsbenny]

We love onsite but we are getting annual passes so have booked hipark which is still walkable. Takes about 15 mins same as Cheyenne or Santa Fe. I have to admit I love on-site but I also like off-site and having a small kitchen and being close to supermarket.

[Gill H]

If budget allows I much prefer onsite. Santa Fe is OK if you just want to have a room to crash in, but if you can afford a little more, Cheyenne has the most immersive theming of any of the hotels. You really feel like you are in the Wild West (albeit with a Starbucks...!)

It's only a 15 minute walk - actually a nice peaceful walk along the river and through the Village.

Try arriving on a weekday to cut the cost, and look out for special offers - there is always an offer! If not on the UK site, check other countries' sites as you can use any.

[chipndalefan]

Previously we always stayed on site, but for my last few trips we have stayed offsite (either at the partner hotels or Val d'Europe) with an annual pass.

Even if you are only planning one trip with an annual pass and offsite accommodation you can usually book a weeks holiday for less than a few days on-site.