mommyintn said:
We loved Windsor Hills!! We were there last March and will be staying at the same townhouse this March. The difference in pricing I think is like a pp said furnishings etc. This is where we stayed and are staying again
http://www.vrbo.com/53573 and the bed in the master bedroom is the most comfortable bed ever (including pillows).
I am a Windsor Hills Resort townhome owner and DISboard member, in addition to that, I stayed in this very unit myself 2 years in a row before we bought our own place there just this summer. We just LOVED it there...absolutely one of the nicest resorts we've ever stayed in ...and very reasonable especially compared to the hotels! (And MUCH nicer!) You're right...that's Lee & Laura's place..and the beds are to DIE for! hehe...we modeled our own place after them and went all top of the line on the beds too, along with 500 threadcount linens and more, it's really awesome! (You won't find her place on windsorhillsrent.com though, just vrbo.com...if you check it out please tell her George referred you! =p )
I can also tell you that their MC (Management Company) is awesome! Very important detail some may overlook (and hard for the rentor to know whom is good / bad). I will not name any bad companies, a few owners have been DISd on the DISboards in the past though, search is your friend, that's all I will say on this topic!
The rates do vary..and you are all correct in stating that it really depends on how the place is furnished on the inside. We put in high end everything for instance, including internet, furniture, 50" plasma flat screen, etc. Therefore we charge a slightly higher rate than some, but you do get what you pay for in return!
The resort is all brand new and was built by Pulte homes in 2005. It consists of 2 and 3 bedroom condos, 3BR/3BA townhomes with private pools (they are all the same floorplan / identical in layout / inside), and 4/5/6 bedroom homes with pools. The resort has an INCREDIBLE clubhouse waterslide pool with game room, movie theater, sundry shop, hot tub, and more. It also has a brand new recreation area with tennis, basketball, sand volleyball, and putting / chipping golf area. There is also a dragon / castle themed high end children's playground area, very cool! It's in a secure gated community and is 2 miles (5 minutes!) away from Disney...definitely the closest and nicest resort to the parks! (It's over by Animal Kingdom).
The site mentioned above is actually NOT the Windsor Hills website...it's a private homeowner's website who got a good domain name before anyone else! LOL Kind of disguised to "look" like it has something to do with the resort, when in fact it's someone advertising just their own homes! lol...clever for them, not the place for you to look for rentals necessarily!
The place to go find all of the resort rentals is:
http://www.windsorhillsrent.com
There are no places in the resort I would call a "dump" by a long shot, but there are variations in amenities and furnishings. The best thing you can do is check out the place, the owner, and their website before you rent! Make sure they have tons of pictures and you get a good idea of what the place looks like before you rent! Some people also have Disney or kid-themed rooms, which is great if you have kids, if you have adults not so great! The place above has bunkbeds in the 3rd bedroom for instance, our kids loved it, it would not be great for adults though, for instance. Some places are more in line with what I would call "average" type vacation home rentals, very nice, while others are in the "luxury" or high end category (ours is purposely done in this category for instance!).
The great thing is that their are tons of owners out there all willing to rent directly to folks like you, at a great rate for what you're getting! I'm going down to our place next month, and it's booked on Friday night, so we're staying at the Royal Plaza DTD for 1 night... and I just about CHOKED today when I found out it was $150/night! LOL... now I'm considering renting another home myself in WHR rather than pay the hotel rates..they're all just SO much nicer and less expensive for what you get! (I have 3 rooms booked at that rate for 2 nights...I can get a 5 bedroom house with pool for a few nights for what we'll spend at the hotel for that!!)
The other great thing about the site...you can go and put out a "general inquiry" or a 3 bedroom / 2 bedroom / 4-5-6 bedroom type inquiry. This type of inquiry will "broadcast" to all of the owners of the size place you are interested in. You will then get back dozens of emails / quotes, and information from the various owners, which will help give you many choices to choose from!
There are NO timeshares at Windsor Hills Resort FYI, it's all privately owned and operated, there is also no central reservations or anything like that, it's all done VRBO or through various area management companies. (So...just a hint...MCs charge the owners a hefty percentage fee...so if you want to save $$ go to the website and book directly from the owners...cut out the middleman!).
Enjoy it, we feel that once the "secret" of this new resort gets out it's going to be jam packed booked all the time! It's one of the nicest places we've ever stayed...and the only reason the rates are still reasonable (compared to renting a place like this elsewhere in the US) is that there is a lot of housing still near Disney. (You should see what we're paying for a VRBO condo in Breckenridge for New Years...ouch! And nowwhere near as nice as our place!)
My other advice for you all newb VRBO rentors...talk to the folks you're going to rent from. Get a sense for who it is you're dealing with, so you're comfortable with the whole process. They should have you fill out a rental agreement and give you their terms and conditions, etc all up front. They should have a good website, lots of pictures, references, links to their MC, and more. If you have doubts...call them on the phone..say hi...and mention that you have doubts...and see what they do to help you feel more comfortable! Ask to talk to their MC! If you call the MC and don't hear back for 3 days...you should be concerned! What will happen if you have an issue when you arrive for instance? Problems do occur, things happen, it's what people do about it that counts, and how quickly can they react to situtations? (Just a few tips I thought i'd share with my fellow DISers!)
One thing for sure, I can tell you whichever place you end up choosing in Windsor Hills, the resort and homes are just incredible, it's a VERY nice resort and you will not be disappointed! It's also truly as close to the parks as you can get, I have made it from my front door to AK in well UNDER 5 minutes... from door-door into the Epcot parking lot in 7 minutes! (Yes I timed it...we got all the way to the parks last trip and I forgot the tickets at home! DOH! LOL)
- George
Oh...please do feel free to PM or email me if you have any questions or I can help out at all!
