Luv Bunnies
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2006
We just returned from spending 10 nights in a Windsor Hills Townhome. It was amazing! The resort is easy to find and located very close to WDW. The grounds are clean and the guards are great. The check-in process is very well-organized and the welcome packet they give you at the gate is very informative. We didn't use the main pool, but it looked really nice. We were impressed with the club house area and the store was nice to have on-site.
The unit we rented was a 3 bedroom/3 bathroom with a splash pool. It was very clean when we arrived and we were prepared for it to be minimally stocked with supplies as was explained in the rental agreement (no surprises). After taking a quick inventory, we went out and bought toilet paper, paper towels and soap. We brought our own laundry detergent and dishwasher pods. There were small bottles of shampoo, but we had brought our own. We also bought groceries for breakfast and snacks. It was really nice for everyone to have whatever they wanted for breakfast without relying on a food court. Plus, it guaranteed at least one healthy meal each day. It was nice to get up and put on a pot of coffee to brew while I was taking a shower.
Now that our boys are teenagers, it was nice for everyone to have their own space. The twin bedroom had a PS2 which our boys loved. My sister was able to have her own bedroom and bathroom downstairs, while DH and I took the master. I also loved having a washer/dryer in the hallway upstairs. Every night, I had everyone pile their sweaty clothes in front of the washer. I would toss it in almost nightly and dry it the next morning. I have memories of spending several hours in a hot laundry room at Pop Century and lugging the stuff back up the stairs near midnight. Never again!
The only issue we had with the townhouse was that the TV in the living room stopped working midway though our trip. We could get sound but no picture. I called the owner and left her a message. She called back after a few hours, hugely apologetic that she wasn't there to take my call. She was beside herself that the TV wasn't working for us. She was also concerned because the TV was only a year old. She assured us it would be taken care of right away and apologized over and over. I told her it wasn't a huge problem and thanked her for being so responsive. The owner lives outside of Florida and has to rely on a management company to do things for her. She had a handyman sent over who did some troubleshooting on the phone with the manufacturer. It was determined that the backlight was burned out and it would cost more to fix than to replace. The owner also found out the management company had purchased a refurbished unit last year and it only had a 90 day warranty. She was led to believe she was getting a new unit with a longer warranty, so she will be having a discussion with her management company. She went online, purchased a new TV and had the handyman pick it up and install it. We were without a TV for three days, but the owner texted me regularly to let me know what was going on. I don't blame her at all for the problem with the TV and I was very happy with her responsiveness. I would not hesitate to stay at one of her units again.
Overall, we were very happy with our stay at Windsor Hills. It was easy to get to and from the parks. One night, DH and DS14 decided they wanted to stay at MK for the fireworks. DS18 has Asperger's and gets anxious after a while in crowds. He was tired and wanted to leave before the fireworks. So he, my sister and I hopped a bus to AKL. I had always wanted to see that resort and it's the closest one to Windsor Hills. When we got there, we looked around a little, bought some drinks and snacks in the gift shop, then went outside to catch a cab. The valet attendant called one for us. The ride home was about 10 minutes and cost less than $20. DH and DS14 closed down MK and got home close to 1:00 a.m. Another day, DS18 decided he wanted to rest rather than go to DTD with us. We had no problem leaving him at the house. He could watch TV or play on the PS2. We didn't have to worry about housekeeping trying to get in. We just made sure to lock the front door and called once to see how he was doing.
I will definitely stay at Windsor Hills again. In fact, I'm hooked on vacation homes now. I may never stay in a tiny hotel room again!
The unit we rented was a 3 bedroom/3 bathroom with a splash pool. It was very clean when we arrived and we were prepared for it to be minimally stocked with supplies as was explained in the rental agreement (no surprises). After taking a quick inventory, we went out and bought toilet paper, paper towels and soap. We brought our own laundry detergent and dishwasher pods. There were small bottles of shampoo, but we had brought our own. We also bought groceries for breakfast and snacks. It was really nice for everyone to have whatever they wanted for breakfast without relying on a food court. Plus, it guaranteed at least one healthy meal each day. It was nice to get up and put on a pot of coffee to brew while I was taking a shower.
Now that our boys are teenagers, it was nice for everyone to have their own space. The twin bedroom had a PS2 which our boys loved. My sister was able to have her own bedroom and bathroom downstairs, while DH and I took the master. I also loved having a washer/dryer in the hallway upstairs. Every night, I had everyone pile their sweaty clothes in front of the washer. I would toss it in almost nightly and dry it the next morning. I have memories of spending several hours in a hot laundry room at Pop Century and lugging the stuff back up the stairs near midnight. Never again!
The only issue we had with the townhouse was that the TV in the living room stopped working midway though our trip. We could get sound but no picture. I called the owner and left her a message. She called back after a few hours, hugely apologetic that she wasn't there to take my call. She was beside herself that the TV wasn't working for us. She was also concerned because the TV was only a year old. She assured us it would be taken care of right away and apologized over and over. I told her it wasn't a huge problem and thanked her for being so responsive. The owner lives outside of Florida and has to rely on a management company to do things for her. She had a handyman sent over who did some troubleshooting on the phone with the manufacturer. It was determined that the backlight was burned out and it would cost more to fix than to replace. The owner also found out the management company had purchased a refurbished unit last year and it only had a 90 day warranty. She was led to believe she was getting a new unit with a longer warranty, so she will be having a discussion with her management company. She went online, purchased a new TV and had the handyman pick it up and install it. We were without a TV for three days, but the owner texted me regularly to let me know what was going on. I don't blame her at all for the problem with the TV and I was very happy with her responsiveness. I would not hesitate to stay at one of her units again.
Overall, we were very happy with our stay at Windsor Hills. It was easy to get to and from the parks. One night, DH and DS14 decided they wanted to stay at MK for the fireworks. DS18 has Asperger's and gets anxious after a while in crowds. He was tired and wanted to leave before the fireworks. So he, my sister and I hopped a bus to AKL. I had always wanted to see that resort and it's the closest one to Windsor Hills. When we got there, we looked around a little, bought some drinks and snacks in the gift shop, then went outside to catch a cab. The valet attendant called one for us. The ride home was about 10 minutes and cost less than $20. DH and DS14 closed down MK and got home close to 1:00 a.m. Another day, DS18 decided he wanted to rest rather than go to DTD with us. We had no problem leaving him at the house. He could watch TV or play on the PS2. We didn't have to worry about housekeeping trying to get in. We just made sure to lock the front door and called once to see how he was doing.
I will definitely stay at Windsor Hills again. In fact, I'm hooked on vacation homes now. I may never stay in a tiny hotel room again!
