Student Travel to Disney World: On Site or Off?
So the powers that be have red-taped their way through to approve the first of what will hopefully be many Orlando educational tours for your organization. You got the brochure from Disney, you sent the proposal, and you’re on your way. Now all you have to do is plan it, get the permission slips signed and the emergency care signatures, organize the travel plans, pair the students into hotel room assignments, and specify the itinerary. This article can’t do all of that for you, but I want to help with one huge question most Disney travelers ask at some point or another before their trip: Should we stay on a Disney resort? After over a decade of experience in educational tours, I can offer some suggestions on this question specific to student groups.
The price of Disney resorts now varies quite a bit from the first luxurious options they used to offer exclusively. In theory, there is now a price range for everyone, the lowest level being their Disney Value Resorts. However, there are numerous nice hotels off-site that offer significantly lower prices than even these. Perhaps the surest clincher is the fact that almost all hotel chains now offer at least a muffin and a cup of juice in their continental breakfast – many even offering hot breakfast options – all included in the price of your room. The Disney resorts do not provide any daily meals. You don’t have to travel with poor college students or work with the parents of your high school travelers more than once to realize this factor will significantly affect the cost of a trip overall.
One of the great perks of a Disney resort is the transportation options. A bus, ferry, or monorail waits practically outside your door several times a day offering transport to the various parks. This service can be less frequent at off-site hotels, although it is often provided. Most student groups, of course, travel to Orlando on a motor coach, making transportation less of an issue. You will have to pay for parking the coach. However, consider the supervision perks. Do you really want a handful to a few hundred students having easy access to their hotel room at any given moment in the day? We came together / we left together is usually the best course for student travel.
The Disney resorts of course are stuffed full of amenities, themes, and thrills that make the price worth exactly what it costs. Items can be purchased in the parks then billed and delivered to your room. There are enough activities in the resorts to constitute a vacation without ever leaving the grounds. Again, this might defeat its purpose if your goal for the students is the many educational and valuable experiences within the Disney parks. The resorts are a wonderful choice for a family or group that hopes to contain their entire trip within the Disney resort. However, with so many other options available to your students in Orlando, you won’t regret having them off-site with motor-coach access to all of the other restaurants and activities in the area.
An educational tour to Orlando will thrill students and chaperones alike. You do not need to stay on a Disney resort to create that famous magic that will keep students returning year after year. The magic is in the culture, attractions, and service within the parks themselves. It’s ready-made, and taking a bus to the parking lot after filling up on the continental at a familiar hotel won’t diminish that in the least.
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