Benefit to spending one night in a Disney Resort? Also Platinum AP question.

fearLesss

Earning My Ears
Joined
Mar 29, 2019
So my partner and I watch various Florida Vlogs, and we run our own Vlog for DLP and stuff and we've seen that some people spend one night in a Disney resort to get some perks and then spend the rest of their trip in somewhere either out of Disney or somewhere else, what (if any) are the benefits to this?

We're going to Florida for the first time in November and we're staying at the Hotel Clarion at Lake Buena Vista, but if there are some sort of perks for staying at a Disney resort then we'd see no harm in booking 1 night at somewhere like Art of Animation or something.

We're also looking into upgrading one of the 14 day tickets to a Platinum AP to get free parking as we're going to be driving in everyday, we've already set aside the money for parking but if this could be put into an AP for free parking plus discounts etc we'd rather do that.

Thank you all! :)
 
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I think you’ll find the ‘throwaway room’ is now stopped. Disney now I think cancel all FPs when you cancel a room reservation.
 
I'd buy a room for a night or two if its either:
A really nice resort like Beach Club or the Grand where I'd just chill and walk to Epcot or MK.
or
With Star Wars for EEMH, Rope Drop will be nonexistent for offsite guests during this period, staying onsite gives you much more access.
 


Thank you for that, but the Disney website doesn't really answer the question I have about upgrading the 14 day ticket to an AP to get the benefits, I was more looking at how much it'd cost and if it was worth it. We're AP holders for DLP so we know how it works it's just the cost that I can't seem to find any answer for.

I'd buy a room for a night or two if its either:
A really nice resort like Beach Club or the Grand where I'd just chill and walk to Epcot or MK.
or
With Star Wars for EEMH, Rope Drop will be nonexistent for offsite guests during this period, staying onsite gives you much more access.

EEMH? I'm just glad that Galaxy's Edge will be open when we go haha, massive Star Wars fan, been told that going in the middle of November before Thanksgiving is a quieter period for us but was definitely thinking about booking a 1 night stay so that we could get EMH at hollywood studios.
 


If you stay at a Disney hotel you can get the Magical Express to your hotel from the airport, if not renting a car.
You will also be able to book you first days FP at 60 days out and get early entry on your first full day when you will be up early anyway because of the time difference . You can store your luggage at the hotel.

You will also get a Magicband each which you can use for the rest of your stay as it will hold your ticket details.

To upgrade your ticket to an AP you will need to visit guest services. Some recommend visiting a few different ones as prices for the upgrade can vary. Hollywood studios used to get good reviews. Basically they're take the base price off the AP price, but as mentioned this is not always a set amount. Work the price out and decide if you are happy with what the CM offers for the upgrade. As well as complimentary parking you get discounts at some restaurants, Shops and recreation like bike rental. This link gives details https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/e...benefits-and-discounts/merchandise-discounts/
 
Thank you for that, but the Disney website doesn't really answer the question I have about upgrading the 14 day ticket to an AP to get the benefits, I was more looking at how much it'd cost and if it was worth it. We're AP holders for DLP so we know how it works it's just the cost that I can't seem to find any answer for.



EEMH? I'm just glad that Galaxy's Edge will be open when we go haha, massive Star Wars fan, been told that going in the middle of November before Thanksgiving is a quieter period for us but was definitely thinking about booking a 1 night stay so that we could get EMH at hollywood studios.

Extra Extra Magic Hours - DHS will be EMH 6am to 9am, but so will MK and DAK. It'll likely still be in effect when you go, meaning there will essentially be no Rope Drop for you when you're offsite, there will be queues on all rides when Offsite guests are allowed in.

Middle of Nov will not be quiet this year, SWGE will make WDW busier for years. Much like WWOHP at Universal did. We're arriving 24th Nov, and fully expect it to be busy, after Thanksgiving is usually quiet, but I don't think it will be!
 
Extra Extra Magic Hours - DHS will be EMH 6am to 9am, but so will MK and DAK. It'll likely still be in effect when you go, meaning there will essentially be no Rope Drop for you when you're offsite, there will be queues on all rides when Offsite guests are allowed in.

Middle of Nov will not be quiet this year, SWGE will make WDW busier for years. Much like WWOHP at Universal did. We're arriving 24th Nov, and fully expect it to be busy, after Thanksgiving is usually quiet, but I don't think it will be!

I agree it'll be busier than it normally will be that time of the year, but I'm still expecting it to be less busy than in the summer for example, so EEMH is from 6am? That's mental I never knew about that, I might book a night in a resort to experience that, do you get it for the check-in and check-out days?
 
I agree it'll be busier than it normally will be that time of the year, but I'm still expecting it to be less busy than in the summer for example, so EEMH is from 6am? That's mental I never knew about that, I might book a night in a resort to experience that, do you get it for the check-in and check-out days?

Yeah it'll be quieter than October for sure.

Yeah, it is up to 2 Nov, so I'm keeping an eye out on the hours as they are announced. And yeah, 2 days of EMH :)
 
Thank you for that, but the Disney website doesn't really answer the question I have about upgrading the 14 day ticket to an AP to get the benefits, I was more looking at how much it'd cost and if it was worth it. We're AP holders for DLP so we know how it works it's just the cost that I can't seem to find any answer for.



EEMH? I'm just glad that Galaxy's Edge will be open when we go haha, massive Star Wars fan, been told that going in the middle of November before Thanksgiving is a quieter period for us but was definitely thinking about booking a 1 night stay so that we could get EMH at hollywood studios.

Hiya! I just upgraded to an AP by bridging my 14 day ticket. It was more expensive than anticipated (£390 to pay) however we may good use of the 20% off merch and are going back in November so we should at least break even.

It's depends on how often you are going to visit WDW as to whether you think paying the difference of the upgrade, is worth it. If you are only visiting once a year, I would say it's not worth doing.

Hope this helps!

Sophie
 
Honestly for me, staying onsite is worth the extra money that it costs compared to offsite.

  • Free bus from the airport and back
  • Free buses to the park everyday
  • You can book dining 180 days out for the first 10 days of your trip
  • Fast Passes 60 days out
  • Disney themed resorts
  • Lovely Cast Members all the time
  • Lovely pools in every resort
  • Its easy to hop back to your hotel in the middle of the day if you fancy a rest
  • Nice food options at every hotel and disney shops in every hotel!
For me its honestly worth it to stay on site. But we dont go to universal or anywhere else in orlando we only do disney so thats another benefit for us
 
Honestly for me, staying onsite is worth the extra money that it costs compared to offsite.

  • Free bus from the airport and back
  • Free buses to the park everyday
  • You can book dining 180 days out for the first 10 days of your trip
  • Fast Passes 60 days out
  • Disney themed resorts
  • Lovely Cast Members all the time
  • Lovely pools in every resort
  • Its easy to hop back to your hotel in the middle of the day if you fancy a rest
  • Nice food options at every hotel and disney shops in every hotel!
For me its honestly worth it to stay on site. But we dont go to universal or anywhere else in orlando we only do disney so thats another benefit for us

Agreed, also even on a purely financial view - when you take the car and parking costs associated with offsite, we've always been able to find a better deal onsite than the price of the decent offsite hotels, or villas.
 

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