Every trip to WDW is different, and everyone's needs are different. The most important thing is to enjoy it as much as possible, without breaking the bank.
We have stayed offsite and onsite. I agree that they are different vacations, there is something magical about being onsite.
We (my wife, my 7 yo son and I) are going in April this year, and for the first time in 4 years we have chosen to stay offsite, entirely to save money. We did this for a number of reasons, although EE never has meant much to me, E-ride nights do (they are back but weren't when we booked) and frankly the final straw for me was when I found out that they weren't delivering packages to the rooms any more. I know they are going to the resort, but it's not quite the same. We got the Comfort Suites Maingate East with an Expedia Special rate of $55 per night. We are there from the 19 - 29, 10 nights for $627 including taxes. I could not possibly do that onsite. In addition, this has 2 queen size beds and a day bed, and a kitchenette. My wife and I are not small people and the double beds in the value and moderates just don't cut it for us. We usually get a towncar or limo, I hate the shuttles so when you combine a roundtrip you get pretty close to the cost of a rental car and with the AP passes parking is not an extra cost. Having said that I would never have done so without first checking on this site to make sure the hotel was ok, and I have found only positive reviews for the CSME.
In fact we are going with my Mother in Law, my Sister in Law and her 5 year old son, my Brother his wife and their infant. Although the room would have slept 6, at $55 per night we all got our own rooms and could have privacy.
Onsite we have stayed at the Contemporary, the Treehouses at the Disney Institute, All Star Sports, The Bungalows at the Disney Institute and Coronado Springs. Of the places that we have stayed onsite we loved the bungalows at the Disney Institue, they were perfect for us, and with AP discounts could usually be had quite reasonably. I was very unhappy to hear that they were shutting down and the DI was becoming part of DVC.
Offsite we have stayed at the HIFS (we went down on buisness) and they were good too, but not the same as on-site, and years ago when we were very young and adventurous we stayed a very long weekend at an Econo-Lodge, which was actually not too bad, it had a nice pool, but the gap in the room door allowed the palmetto bugs free access to the room. We used a towel to keep traffic to a minimum when we were in the room. Other than that the room was fine.
In the end, it is a Disney trip, and most of your time is in the parks anyway. When my brother had a car at the All-Star Sports he used it instead of the busses because it was faster and more comfortable. If the hotel is close it shouldn't be that different.
