Disney at Christmas

[Dayton]

I'm looking at renting a place near or on property at Disney during Christmas week. 12 people ages: 30's, 50's, 80's + a 2-year old. Any information / tips / suggestions anyone could provide would be greatly appreciated.

**Note: Yes, I already know this is nuts, but I could still use some serious help with planning.

[PR1234]

We took our grandkids and stayed at www.allstarvacationhomes.com in Orlando. It was a VERY nice house, game room,home theatre room,pool and all close to the parks. Check it out.:pepper2::pepper2:

[Niels]

I love staying on property. It's nice having the benefits of staying on property such as extra magic hours in the theme parks and park transportation.

However, with 12 people I would consider renting a large house off property. It would give you more room to spread out plus it's easier to keep the family together. Although I have never used them, I had heard good recommendations concerning All Star Vacation homes mentioned by the previous poster. They have nice homes within a few miles of Disney, some fairly large. I've stayed off property in nearby condos and wound up spending about the same amount of time getting to the parks as I did when I stayed on property.

[thegreenerside]

Made the mistake of going to Disney during Christmas week two years ago. That is the busiest week of the year for Disney and you could not move through the parks. They do limit the number of people in the parks by closing the gates at a certain capacity, but it was the worst experience I have ever encountered. I wish you luck.

[spk7951]

I'm looking at renting a place near or on property at Disney during Christmas week. 12 people ages: 30's, 50's, 80's + a 2-year old. Any information / tips / suggestions anyone could provide would be greatly appreciated.

**Note: Yes, I already know this is nuts, but I could still use some serious help with planning.

We owned a vacation home three miles from Disney for five years and rented it out. Christmas is the busiest time of the year and the crowds are very large. As previously mentioned the parks will shut the doors when they reach their capacity and in fact we had that happen one New Years eve just after we got through the gates. For a group your size renting a house would be your best bet. Not sure what they are getting now but I would guess a six bedroom might be around $1,800 for Christmas week, if not more. While there are advantages to staying in Disney you can expect to pay quite a bit more for hotel rooms for your party versus a vacation home. The area for houses closest to Disney is near the former Splendid China park off of 192. There are numerous developments that specialize in short term rentals along Sand Hill Road and Old Lake Wilson Road. That area is about a three mile ride to get to the Disney complex. If you deal with a rental agency ask if they have houses in that area and how old they are. The newer the better. Also, it may be tough to find a house at this late date. It was very common for us to have our Christmas rentals booked by early in the year. If you have any questions feel free to pm me. Good luck and if you do get there you will really enjoy it as Disney really is a beautiful sight at Christmas.