Disney Vacation Home Information

Disney Vacationing: A Dream Come True

A trip to Walt Disney World in Florida is a dream come true for many families. While this trip can be the vacation of a lifetime, it can also blow a big hole in your budget. Where can you cut corners? You may be able to save money on accommodations if you do your homework.

Choosing the best accommodations for your family and your budget doesn't have to be a chore if you know where to look. While many people choose to stay in the park at one of the Disney resorts, this typically isn't the best option if you are looking to save money. Sure, the convenience of staying in the park, including free transportation, is great, but did you know that there are many Disney vacation homes that are almost as close? Why choose a home over a hotel?

• Price: Disney resorts aren't cheap considering the amount of room you have available. Depending upon the resort you are using as a comparison, you may be able to rent an entire house for the same price or less. If you are traveling with a group that needs at least two rooms, you'll actually save money by renting a vacation home.
• Location: While the resorts provide free shuttle service, you often have to wait to be picked up. Shuttles can be very crowded certain times of the day and year as well. If you are driving to the Disney area, you'll already have your transportation ready to use.
• Room: A family of three may find that staying in a Disney resort is their best bet, but for larger families, a small hotel room can be stressful, especially after several days of vacationing. A vacation home will provide every one some much needed space.
• Food: If you were to eat three meals in the parks every day, you'll spend a lot of money for a family of four. If you have chosen a vacation home as your accommodation, however, you can eat breakfast and come back in the evening to prepare supper.
• Amenities: Homes can offer other amenities, such as washer/dryers, pools, several TVs, DVD players, etc.

Finding Disney Vacation Home Information

The Internet offers a wealth of Disney vacation home information for tourists to check out. With approximately 700 property-management companies in the Walt Disney World area, it's no wonder that vacation home rentals are big business. Many of these companies only manage a handful of homes, but there are several businesses that manage more than 100 homes each. Individuals pay these companies to manage their homes as rental property. There are numerous websites that you can check out, but the most user friendly sites include the following:

• VRBO-Vacation Rentals by Owner is a great condo/home rental site. This site isn't just limited to Florida, and in fact, you can search for homes all over the world! Many of the properties have built-in availability calendars that allow you to check on the availability of a particular property. You can also view photos of the exact property in which you are interested.
• All Star Vacation Homes-This is another wonderful Disney vacation home site. Again, you can view the actual property you are considering. Each property gives detailed information. You can search by home type, such as home or condo, and narrow your search by number of bedrooms. The site offers over 150 homes/condos to choose from.
• Disney Rents-Choose from small vacation homes to luxury villas complete with game rooms and entertainment systems. Many of the homes available have private pools, and again, you can click on individual properties to view the available amenities.
• Last Minute Villas-Waiting until the last minute to book your vacation home? Check out this site for available homes for rent.

Location, Location

Use the Disney vacation home information to help you choose a vacation home that suits your family's needs, but make sure the home is convenient as well. You may find hundreds of homes that boast being "within minutes" of Disney. Just how many minutes is the ad referring to, however? Understandably traffic around the parks can be tricky to navigate, and the key to choosing a convenient vacation home is to pay attention to how many minutes and how many miles the home is from Disney. U.S. 192 south of Disney could probably be argued as the most convenient area for accessing Disney parks. Look for homes that advertise they are no farther away than four or five miles from the Disney parks.

Finally, with lots of preparation and a few insider tips, you can find the perfect home and plan the perfect Disney vacation for your family. Good luck!