Budget hotel with shuttle service for college seniors

[freshstart19]

My DD wants to go to Disney for spring break. What started out with 4 or 6 girls is down to 2 making staying at the POP too expensive for the 2 of them. Been checking on properties off site but the shuttle service seems very infrequent and I do expect them to go to Downtown Disney at night. They won't have a car since they're too young to rent one! Any ideas? They are also going to want to go to Universal and City Walk for a day. Found the Mears shuttle for that.

 

[robinb]

Hmmm ... Pop may still end up being the best bet for someone who can't drive unless they are willing to take the Lynx from the airport. I would start over at the DIS home page: http://www.wdwinfo.com/ , click on the Orlando Hotels tab and scroll down to where you can check hotel rates.

You can also check the current version of the Unofficial Guide for their off-site hotel picks.

 

[asmit4]

Are either of them 21? I ask b/c for my spring break my sr. year we were all 21 and I think 21 is the magical age for renting a car. However, have you done the math on staying at POP and using the DW transportation? I am betting it will be less than trying to use other options.

 

[asmit4]

Also- I presume they are flying into Orlando right? If they stay offsite they'll need transport to the hotel and back to the airport too. That will further add costs. I am betting the 100 or so a night at POP with all the transportation included is the way to go.

 

[robinb]

Also- I presume they are flying into Orlando right? If they stay offsite they'll need transport to the hotel and back to the airport too. That will further add costs. I am betting the 100 or so a night at POP with all the transportation included is the way to go.

That was my thought. They would have to get to/from the airport and that can cost $50 each unless they are willing to take the public Lynx bus from the airport. Then, they would have to get to the parks. Most car companies require people to be 25-years old to rent, not just 21.

ETA: OP, you may want to keep tabs on Travel Zoo for deals. They often have the Comfort Inn Lake Buena Vista on sale for $29 - $49 per night and it has limited shuttle service. There are also all the hotels on Hotel Blvd that offer a more complete shuttle.

 

[freshstart19]

Thanks for your replies! I do have the 2008 Unofficial Guide. Forgot I had that! AAA gave me a price of $32 RT to airport and back. I've never used TravelZoo so I will check that out for sure. Have used Priceline and Hotwire but can't take the change given the need for transportation. Am good at "guessing" which hotel I'd win based on other websites, but don't want to take the risk here.

Is there an area to stay away from since the girls will be "car-less"? It would be great if the hotel off site was near some restaurants or grocery stores within walking distance to bring down food costs.

Thanks!

 

[onlinekk]

so wonderful...............

 

[robinb]

You might want to put their dates into a search engine like Travelocity and sort by price. I wouldn't look at anything less than a 3*. Then you can check each hotel for a shuttle and other requirements and cross reference the hotel with TripAdvisor. I see that POP is about $155 per night so even when you add in transportation to/from MCO it's pretty easy to beat.

Sorry I don't have a hotel right off the top of my head.

 

[freshstart19]

Yes, I have begun doing that. Did some research on TravelZoo this morning and found rooms for around $60 per night. The Clarion was $69. There were 2 hotels close to Old Town that I thought might be worth checking out so there would be restaurants/shops near them. Haven't checked the reviews yet but the 2 were Barefoot n Resort and Celebration Suites. Thanks for the tips!

 

[robinb]

One more thing ... I was poking around on Bookit.com and noticed that they had an option on the advanced search where you could see only those hotels that offer a shuttle. That should make your job a little easier .

 

[freshstart19]

Hi Robinb, I did discover Bookit yesterday and started poking around with the search options. Thanks for pointing it out.

 

[jalferes]

bookit is a great site - are there any other options to find the best deals ?