Similar to Windsor Hills?

conniehar90

conniehar90

DIS Veteran
Joined
Apr 5, 2005
We have been staying at Windsor Hills for the past 5 or more years. We love it there but during our recent trip we were very disenchanted with the new security gate. I know most people think it is no big deal, but the slowness of getting in and out really bothered us. I guess it is not enough to keep us away, but I thought maybe this is the time to look for some place new. We are interested in a condo that is close to WDW. We have stayed at Windsor Palms before and like that but prefer the newness of WH - plus it is closer than WP.

Any suggestions for places to check out? Thanks!!
 
Bonnet Creek, Vistanna Resort, Lake Buena Vista Village, World Quest Resort - all would be closer to the Epcot/DTD side of Disney.
Reunion Resort is very nice but it wouldn't be as close as WH or these others. You can rent directly from the resort or from private owners via vrbo.
 


Like Dave has mentioned Emerald Island Resort has condos but they do not have the splash pools. Not sure if that is a deal breaker?

Nice gated resort! Close to WH's.
 
Crestwyn is right beside WH. It has townhomes and I found some amazing deals there.... I guess because it's not as "in vogue". I don't know much about it though.
 
conniehar90 said:
We have been staying at Windsor Hills for the past 5 or more years. We love it there but during our recent trip we were very disenchanted with the new security gate. I know most people think it is no big deal, but the slowness of getting in and out really bothered us. I guess it is not enough to keep us away, but I thought maybe this is the time to look for some place new. We are interested in a condo that is close to WDW. We have stayed at Windsor Palms before and like that but prefer the newness of WH - plus it is closer than WP.

Any suggestions for places to check out? Thanks!!
Click to expand...

What happens at gate check in? Everyone needs to present IDs or something? Wondering how our group of 10 can be prepared to be quick for ourselves and others waiting in line. I believe we'll have 2 rental cars.
 


What happens at gate check in? Everyone needs to present IDs or something? Wondering how our group of 10 can be prepared to be quick for ourselves and others waiting in line. I believe we'll have 2 rental cars.
Click to expand...

No, each car needs to check in. You have to show the rental paperwork from the management company and the driver's DL. Then they print a card for you that needs to be scanned each time you come in or leave. We just got back 2 weeks ago and we were lucky when we arrived that there was no one else in line to check in. There were times during our trip that we saw lines 5-6 cars deep to check in. Our complaint is with the coming and going. The scanner just doesn't work very well (you have to hold the card real still and real close to the scanner to get it to register). Many people have trouble and you are sitting there in the car (tired from a day at Disney) waiting for them to scan their card. Once the card scans, the gate is soooo slow to open. So, we also saw lines 6 or so deep with cars trying to get into the complex. We found on this last trip, that many people will try to follow the car in front of them through the gates before they close. This helps speed up the process. We also found that the guards kept the exit gate open most of the day so you could just drive through (not in the early morning though).
 
Just got back from a 7 night stay at a WH home. The men that work the gates were excellent --- very attentive, kind and so helpful. When cars backed up at "busy" times, they stepped out of their hut and let people through quickly. Honestly, the wait was nothing worth mentioning. The staff had it well under control while we were there.
 
purplebelle said:
Just got back from a 7 night stay at a WH home. The men that work the gates were excellent --- very attentive, kind and so helpful. When cars backed up at "busy" times, they stepped out of their hut and let people through quickly. Honestly, the wait was nothing worth mentioning. The staff had it well under control while we were there.
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for posting this! We are checking in next Friday and had wondered if this would be an issue.:thumbsup2
 
we just got back from WDW we stayed in a house in Indian creek its not a gated community but I never seen or heard anything bad(very quiet) very close to the parks and shopping its a great house(this is the second time we rented this house) and we cant wait to go back. any questions just ask
Click to expand...

Bummer! Already booked up for my dates! Thanks for passing this along!
 
purplebelle said:
Just got back from a 7 night stay at a WH home. The men that work the gates were excellent --- very attentive, kind and so helpful. When cars backed up at "busy" times, they stepped out of their hut and let people through quickly. Honestly, the wait was nothing worth mentioning. The staff had it well under control while we were there.
Click to expand...

Sorry to hijack but did you write up anywhere how you felt it compared to staying on property?
 
conniehar90 said:
The scanner just doesn't work very well (you have to hold the card real still and real close to the scanner to get it to register). Many people have trouble and you are sitting there in the car (tired from a day at Disney) waiting for them to scan their card.
Click to expand...

ITA! It seems like such a minor irritation but by the end of the week we had grown really tired of it. It probably doesn't seem as bad if you're there at a slower time, but we were there at peak season and there was ALWAYS a line each way. I hope someone reports on here if they get new scanners/gates, because I really liked WH otherwise.
 
purplebelle said:
Just got back from a 7 night stay at a WH home. The men that work the gates were excellent --- very attentive, kind and so helpful. When cars backed up at "busy" times, they stepped out of their hut and let people through quickly. Honestly, the wait was nothing worth mentioning. The staff had it well under control while we were there.
Click to expand...

This was our experience as well. We were there for 2 weeks in June this year.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards
 
Hi there. No, I didn't write up a comparison on the boards. I have bad luck with writing reviews without any comments. :)

By overall, I prefer staying on site. Off-site is lacking in Disney Magic but is MUCH less expensive, especially with 8 adults splitting the cost. So really, it just comes down to money for me. If I can afford to stay on site, I will, but I think my husband prefers off-site b/c he can escape the Disney Magic when it gets to be too much. Too much for him is after, oh...4 hours in one park. :confused3

mrsklamc said:
Sorry to hijack but did you write up anywhere how you felt it compared to staying on property?
Click to expand...
 
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