Best hotel for adult weekend & activities..

[katie111]

We are looking to take a couple's getaway in March without the kids. Just 3 nights. Willing to go anywhere but Orlando seems to have the best flights for us right now. Looking for a great hotel to just hang out at. DH is not into Disney although I may convince him to spend an evening at Disney Springs or maybe a monorail bar crawl.

Any ideas on a great hotel? Would prefer to be under $300, preferably closer to $200. Would like a hotel with great pools, restaurants onsite & nearby, and not too many kids (although I realize this is Orlando). If they had other activities available on-site that would be great.

Also, any suggestions for fun, non-theme park activities? Thinking maybe an airboat tour, zip-lining, etc.

 

[pepperandchips]

Well the first thing that comes to my mind is the Swan. I love Westin properties anyhow, but the pools there at the Swan/Dolphin are fabulous and the restaurants (BlueZoo, Shula's, Il Mulino) are top notch. There's plenty to do at the Boardwalk area including all the recreation rentals at the Yacht Club and you can do the Crescent Lake bar crawl easily, or take a free Disney bus to Magic Kingdom to do the monorail bar crawl you mentioned. Strolling the Boardwalk and sidewalks surrounding the Crescent Lake at night is a magical, romantic experience. I've gotten great rates for the Swan and Dolphin using Orbitz and LMT Club. There's no Disney theming inside the rooms or lobby, so great for adults

Another resort we loved was Hilton Bonnet Creek - got a great rate, again through a third party discount site. They have a gorgeous pool area and our "standard" room looked out onto the lovely golf course. You can share amenities with the Waldorf Astoria and get bus transport to Disney Springs.

If you are lucky or traveling early in March, you might find Loew's Portofino Bay in your price range... And if it was $300 a night it would be worth every penny! Not too many kids, a gorgeous adult-type villa pool area, amazing restaurants and walk or boat to Universal CityWalk. We ran into Lisa Kudrow and Tina Fey there... No kidding. Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous.

I would suggest WBC but I see that you've stayed there and there are quite a lot of children. The Hyatt Regency is highly recommending by some and you could always check prices at the JW Marriott

As far as offsite activities I would check out @Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina's trip reports and for dining suggestions outside the theme park bubble I would defer to my guru @schumigirl.

I don't know where you are traveling from, but in case you're flexible... We had an absolutely fantastic couples weekend in Asheville, NC (tons to do in walking distance of downtown), got cheapish flights into Sacramento and drove to Sonoma wine country, and I absolutely adore Alexandria, VA (fly into DC and metro rail to Alexandria). All would be great for a getaway!

Enjoy your planning!!!

 

[HeatherC]

Check out the Marriott Grande Vista. Beautiful Resort.

Check their AAA rates which are very good. We will be there next month for 10 days and I booked a rate of $122 a night. It is higher now because I booked a long time ago, but last I checked rates were pretty reasonable.

Also..you can see pictures and reviews on tripadvisor.

Hope this helps!