Magic Castle Anyone????

[PhotobearSam]

My fiance and I are going for 2 weeks in October and can only afford about $35 a night and found a great rate at Magic Castle. We only care if it's clean and safe, we don't go much for frills. We are only going to be there to sleep and use the fridge...

Any critiques???

:bounce: Thanks:bounce:

[sammi]

Hi Sam: We stayed at the Magic Castle Inn (the one right across from the Super Walmart) this past November and paid $30.00 US per night and we found it to be really nice! It's a plain type of room but very clean and smells nice too! You get a free continental breakfast included(bagels,cerel,toast,fruit,donuts,beverages etc.)We found the staff to be very polite and helpful too.

The only drawback is that the pool is not heated and depending on when you go it will be too cool to swim in.(October might be ok depending on the weather) We only stayed a total of 6 days there during our 3 week stay as we stayed at Cypress Pointe Resort the rest of the time but we were so busy with the parks that we only needed a place to sleep and we found it to be very acceptable!

Hope this helps you....I know there are quite a few of us Diser's here that have stayed there so maybe someone else will give you their opinion too!

By the way.....a BIG welcome to another fellow Canuck and an even BIGGER welcome to the DIS boards......you'll have a great time here!!! Guaranteed! LOL Have a wonderful vacation too.:earsboy: :sunny: :earsboy: :sunny:

[tmsclsdisneybound]

We're staying at Magic Castles in May/June. We'll try to post when we get back as to what we think of it. We've posted several times & always seem to get good reports. We too got a great rate & we can barely wait to go!!

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[KTex]

Is there a website for Magic Castle?

[sammi]

Yes KTex sorry I meant to post here this morning it's www.magicorlando.com!:)

[tink2dw]

There is a Magic Castle that looks just like a castle, a big Pink one ,in Lake Buena Vista on International Drive. When my DD saw it on the way to Belz Factory Outlet ,She ask why we weren't staying there??? And After seeing it I wondered why,too??? It looks a lot like Cinderella's Castle!!

And you will be out of the road constrution in Kissimme!!

[NancyIL]

If your dates are definite, I'd give Priceline a try! For $35 you can probably get a much nicer hotel. Go to http://pub4.************/bpricelineandexpediabidding.html and read VERY CAREFULLY before even considering bidding!

[PhotobearSam]

Have considered this but it's not officially available to Canadians so I can't be certain of the results and I can't afford to take a chance....

Have any Canadians on this board had any luck with it?

[PhotobearSam]

Bump:bounce:

[sammi]

You would get more results if you try posting your question directly to the Canadian Boards.

[Mickey's sunshine]

Tink2dw - I think the hotel you are talking about is the Doubletree Castle...it is not the same as the Magic Castle. I have never stayed at the Magic Castle, have at the DT Castle. Hope this clears up any confusion that may happen. :D

[KTex]

Mickey's Sunshine: do you have a web address for the Doubletree Castle? How was your stay there? What price range? Would you recommend it?

[tmsclsdisneybound]

We just got back a couple weeks ago. Sorry for the delay in giving our opinion of Magic Castle. We were very pleased with everything. The continental breakfast was fine, donuts, cereal, fruit, bagels, english muffins, toast, milk and juice. The room was simple but nice and clean. Pool was nice and clean. The shallow end was still 3 1/2 feet deep, so not real great for small children. But we definitely would stay there again. We did not use their shuttle service, so I can't tell you anything about that.

[sammi]

Hi tm! Glad to hear that you found that the Magic Castle met your needs.I thought you would like it! Especially for the price...:D We too would go back there to stay and it's a great money saver if you have a few kids as the breakfast every morning alone can be very expensive! I enjoyed the breakfast too! Welcome home:)

[PhotobearSam]

:) Wow thanks guys!!!

We are definetly staying there now that you have given it such a great review...

How long does it take to drive to WDW from the hotel?

Any good restaurants nearby?

What about the fridge, what size is it?

Were there any local attractions near (i.e. Olde Town etc)?

Thanks for all the info.

Glad you had a good time...:cool:

[sammi]

Hi Photobear!

Glad to hear that you've chosen the Magic Castle! There are 2 Magic Castle Inns on the 1-92 (Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy). We stayed at the one across from the super Wal Mart (at least it's just down the road on the opposite side as the Magic Castle).

Legth of time to drive to WDW-hmmm about 15 minutes I'd say
Restaurants nearby: Tons and tons LOL you have a HUGE variety of restaurants to choose from (personally I liked the Bahama Breeze);)
Fridge size: about the same size as a bar fridge that you'd put in your rec room
Local attractions: Yep there is Old town about 1 mile down the road,and the Medeival Times Dinner theatre is just across the street, so is a little park (can't quite remember the name) that has animals and gators (zoo like):D There is a nice mini golf too just up a little from the hotel (you can walk to it)

Also make sure you spend a little time and pick up the TONS & TONS of brochures and coupon books available everywhere as you can get sooo much information on places to see and cheaper places to eat including coupons for food and attractions too......we Canadians need all the help we can get with our dropping dollar:(

I always enjoyed just relaxing on our bed after a busy day and going through the many brochures and planning our next day! Hope this helps and you have a great time.....you can PM me if you'd like any more information:wave: :wave: :wave:

[ncbyrne]

Last year my DH and I (no kids) were determined to make our trip as long as we possibly could on our less than ideal budget and still get ALL of the Disney magic! The Magic Castle helped us fulfill our goal. Our original plans, (staying inside the park for the whole trip) and budget only alloted us 6 days total stay at one of the premium WDW resorts. After finding these boards, we changed our plans. Stayed 8 nights at the Magic Castle, then moved to the Grosvenor for 4 nights and then moved again to DL for another 4 nights. A wonderful, wonderful 16 day vacation on the same $ we had planned for 6!!! I'd do it all again at the same hotels. Thanks DISers! I'll never plan another Orlando trip without first seeking your advice.

[sammi]

Glad to hear that you had a great and EXTENDED time in Orlando ncybrne!;) I'm with you in thinking the same thing. When we were staying at the Magic Castle it was for a few days then we went on to stay with my cousins from Scotland at Cypress Pointe resort (which is 5 star and wonderful) They are owners there....then back to Magic Castle for the last few days.....all in all we had 3 weeks there! It's even harder to think about staying onsite when our dollar up here in Canada gets you absolutely nowhere:( Glad you had a fun time and yes the DIS is a great place for sharing tips!;)

[TinkerPixie]

Hi, PhotobearSam, what days will you be at Magic Castle? DH and I will also be staying there starting Oct.21 for a week. Might be nice to chat with fellow DIS folks!

[PhotobearSam]

:bounce:
We are supposed to arrive on October 21st in the evening and are staying until we leave on the morning of Nov 2nd for our long drive back to Canada...

This is all contigent on my fiance being able to get time off from his new job and me staying at my current job.(He got laid off from a high tech firm and I'm searching for a better position but we are very determined to go and already have the $$$ but we hope that our bosses will let us go...)

Are you doing Mickey's not so scarry Halloween Party???

Can't wait...109 days...

:)

Samantha and Richard

[TinkerPixie]

What a coincidence! Maybe we will bump into each other while we will be there! I don't think that we will be doing the Halloween party, We did the christmas party last year and frankly it was a madhouse. I'm really not good with crowds, so will probably skip it. Halloween is my B-Day ! Do you know yet which Magic Castle you will be at?:bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[PhotobearSam]

We are staying at the one that is 3.5 miles from WDW.
The address is 5055 W. Hwy.192...

Do you plan on using the shuttle? We are going to use our car on most days. I guess the free breakfast is really good. How many days are you staying? Will you have park hopper tickets? We are hoping to have 7 day park hoppers but will probably end up with 5 day passes.

We plan on doing Blizzard Beach and Typhoon lagoon.(I love sharks so I can't wait to do the swim with the sharks)

We are planning to do

2 days MK and MNSSHP
1 day at Epcot plus one evening
1 day at MGM
1 day at Animal Kingdom

It would be great to see ya....:jester:

[tmsclsdisneybound]

It was only about a 10 minute drive to the Walt Disney World Entrance. As far as close attactions, the closest would be the Medevial Dinner Theater. It's not more than a block away. The Walmart Super Store is just past that.

Staying at the Magic Castle definitely made our trip possible. We were originally planning to wait until next summer to go. But with their prices we were able to do it this year. I guess it all depends on what you're looking for. We wanted clean and simple and less expensive. After all, most of our time was spent at Disney World.

Hope you have a great time. Wish we were there again!

[PhotobearSam]

Does anyone know if there are laundry facilities on site and how much they cost???

THANKS:cool:

[sammi]

If I remember correctly there are a couple of washers and dryers available but I'm not sure of the cost as we didn't need use them.

[ncbyrne]

Yes, there are washers and dryers onsite, but we went to a laundromat just up the street. (Chambermaid told us where it was). It was much cheaper per load, plus we were able to do all the wash at once.

[mczim2]

Well, everyone here has helped me make my decision...we're staying at the Magic Castle! Just made reservations for 4 nights in August-at 32.95/night you can't beat the price.(AAA rate.) All we really need is a clean place to sleep and swim and according to everyone here we've found it. :) :p :) :p :) :p
We'll give everyone a report when we return.

24 days to go....

Can't wait to go...Can't wait to go...Can't wait to go...

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[PhotobearSam]

I am sooooo jealous of you...24 days!!!

We are at 100 days and the wait is killing me. I am very curious to see if you will like Magic Castle, please let us know and if there is enough room in your suitcase I would love to go with you sooner...LOL

Have a great time...:bounce:

[PhotobearSam]

Bumped up for TINK 30

Hope this helps:D

[PhotobearSam]

Bump for J&D:D

[mczim2]

Well... here we are back from one of the best vacations of our lives! As far as the Magic Castle goes - it was PERFECT for us! Rooms were fairly simple but very clean and comfortable. The continental breakfast was great - cereal, bagels, muffins, toast, fresh fruit and this family's favorite- Krispy Kreme donuts! Drinks included unlimited fresh coffee, milk, fruit punch and orange juice-highly recommended..it was ICE cold! The entire staff throughout our stay was extremely helpful and polite. The pool area was clean and comfortable and there is even a small game room available. The drive to disney was maybe 10 minutes at the most. All in all, as long as what you're looking for is a decent place to sleep at an excellent price while enjoying the area's attractions during the day I highly recommend the Magic Castle. If we can't stay onsite the next time we go (about 4 years) the Magic Castle will be our first choice.

[PhotobearSam]

Thanks for the great news and now we can't wait to go......:bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[sammi]

Hi mczim2! Glad you had a great time! lol:)

I know that we found the hotel to be clean and very friendly and wouldn't hesitate to spend time there the next vacation!Saved us a bundle and we were just DH and myself BUT if anyone had children then the breakfast alone would be worth the price! Welcome home!:wave: :wave: :wave: :wave:

[PhotobearSam]

Now that the search is again available, I thought I would finally let everyone know how much we liked the Magic Castle Inn and Suites. It was a great vacation and staying there helped us double the length of our trip.

Now that I have been laid off, I'm glad we went when we did. Maybe with my severance package we can go back LOL!!!

It was clean and the breakfast was great and we were anywhere on disney property in less than 12 minutes.

I took pictures of the room if anyone is interested I could e-mail them to you.

Can't wait to go back:bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[Debbie-TN]

I'm glad to hear such positive remarks about Magic Castle. We usually stay at the other one at 5055 Irlo Bronson. It's a nice little hotel for the price. We really enjoy the breakfast-especially the Krispy Kreme doughnuts. Yum yum. I also love that the Super Walmart is right down the street.

[ncbyrne]

There are two Magic Castle properties. Both are on Rt 192. One is about 3 miles or so from the main gate and the other is about 5 miles. They are comparable, but the one 5 miles out is a few dollars a night cheaper. This is the one we stayed at and we were perfectly satisfied. It's across the street from Medieval Times. The breakfast really makes it worth while. We had a car, so never used the bus transportation to WDW, but lots of others did every day and I never heard any complaints.

[sammi]

LOL Great news Sam!:) It's a really nice hotel for just when you need a clean place to lay your head down after a busy day at the parks and the breakfast is a nice "addition" too....especially if you have a bunch of kids with you.;)

Sorry to hear about your job loss (I know what that feels like too) but hey maybe you can stash a little of that severance pay in the disney bank account! LOL;)