* Why did you choose this resort?
We were arriving in Orlando a couple days before our
reservations on property began and they could not
get us in to All Star Sports early. It was a
competition weekend and all values were full!! We
are members of Mousesavers and I went there to see
what kind of deals were available. I should mention
that I did this in the parking lot of a McDonald's
just a few miles outside of Orlando, less than an
hour before we actually checked in to the hotel –
so you do not need any lead time – just access to
the internet, I guess... We got the $69 per night
rate and last year when we just stopped in here,
they told us either $99 or $119...
* What were the resort rooms like? Were they big enough for your family? Did you find them to be
acceptable?
The rooms were awesome!! We had a balcony,
refrigerator, 2 queen sized beds, a nice flat screen
TV. Plenty of space around the table in the room to
eat – the boys ate out on the balcony when we brought
food back to the room. Outside the bathroom was a nice
large area with a shelf and mirror that you could use
to get ready at while someone else was in the bathroom.
Other things in the room included a coffee maker, iron,
safe, video game thing for the tv (we didn't let the
boys use it). They also have the Disney top 10 channel
that the boys love to watch every minute we're in the
room!! Gotta love the excitement that Stacy shows over
and over again :)
* What were the amenities of the resort like?
What was your favorite one?
They had a nice little fitness center – you had to use
your key to get into it, it was not something we had
time to use but if we had more time here, my husband
would've liked to take advantage of it. The pool was
very nice sized and they had a kiddie pool (it was not
that warm) We only swam at night and it was early
February – warm days and chilly nights... I ended up
not going in bc the air was just cold enough that the
warm water wasn't warm enough for me!! The kids and
daddy had a blast, but all I did was put my feet in!
There was also a game room that we did not use but it's
there. They have birds in the lobby area that the boys
got a kick out of too. They also try and get you to go
to a time share appt (the 2 guys sitting at a nice big
desk off to the side in the lobby). They weren't
terribly pushy but they give you a lot of coupons for
local stores and restaurants. We made the mistake of
using one of them at Cici's across the street – DON'T!!
Those coupons cost you more than if you just order like
you would without a coupon. Our “free” buffets at Cici's
cost us over $20 bc we had to buy sodas to get them –
the boys sodas cost more than their buffets and the place
has sulfer water so all the soda or iced tea options were
nasty!! We should've stuck with Subway like the first night!!
There were some good coupons for Downtown Disney in our
booklet from the front desk though!
* What was the food court like? Any favorite foods?
I can not brag about the food at this resort. As part of the mousesavers rate, we rec'd 2 complimentary
continental breakfasts each day, which meant a bagel and
coffee or juice. They have a restaurant with a breakfast
buffet – you could upgrade to that for $6 each and the
kids were only $3 each – we figured it was a bargain based
on what we pay for Character breakfasts! We checked it out
and decided to go with it. They had Mickey Waffles (the
large ones), pancakes, french toast, cereal, salad bar,
sausage, bacon, toast, bagels, muffins, fruits, and other
things that I am sure I'm forgetting. The boys wanted that
big Mickey Waffle first thing so I made them, got them back
to the table and went to get my own. When I got back,
neither of them were eating and had these grossed out faces.
There was something with the batter or the syrup, I dont'
know but we quickly realized that this was not Disney Standard
food :( They ended up eating cereal and a banana even the
strawberries weren't good).. We always take a banana with
us when we do Character breakfasts because they can never
eat them, this place had a note on the table that if you take
a banana, you will be charged something like $2.50!! Even
my husband, who can get twice his money's worth on any buffet,
left hungry. So not worth the $18 plus tax and tip!! We
should've gotten the 2 bagels and juice and let him get the
buffet just because he did eat more than the rest of us.. The
second morning, we only got what was free and headed to
All Stars to check in.
* How were the resort buses? What was your walk to
the bus stop like? How were the resorts bus stops at
the parks? How far was the walk to the gates?
How crowded were the buses at any given time?
We never actually rode any of the buses. They were never
there when we were ready to go to Downtown Disney. We had
our own car so we just drove down and once we walked.
It was a hike but it was fun and went quickly! We knew
we weren't going to be buying anything big and just wanted
the exercise after 2 days of driving south. The bus stop
at the resort was right outside the front doors though, very
convenient. The buses looked like they had much more
comfortable seats than the Disney buses do.
* Would you stay at this resort again? If not, please provide a reason.
I would stay at this resort again as a prequil to our on
site stay. I would only stay here though at the mousesavers
rate – I would not pay the full price. It is a very nice
hotel but there are hundreds of them around that area in
the same $69 price range.
*Sorry Kristin - apparently I took NO photos at this
resort - I find that hard to believe, since I easily take
over 1500 at Disney...
Okay, I found one of my 10 year old on the balcony drinking
his rootbeer :)
