Buena Vista Palace Questions

[jakeybake]

Hi,

I am a total WDW Resort snob. I would never dream of staying off property but unfortunately, I am forced to in December due to a work conference. Now, I'm not complaining about a free trip to WDW but I am a bit bummed that I won't be at one of my precious resorts on property.

The resort I will be staying at is the Buena Vista Palace. I have no clue about anything related to this resort except for the fact that it's located next to Downtown Disney.

Does anyone have any info on the resort? Has anyone out there ever stayed there and if so what was your impression of it? My biggest concerns besides the obvious condition of resort is how Disney it is. Since it is one of the "official" resorts I was hoping it would have the WDW tv channels like the information loop, Stacy etc.

Any info you can provide is of course greatly appreciated!!! Thanks in advance!

Jay

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

You might get more answers on this if you posted it under the Orlando Hotels and Atrractions section. I stayed at the BV Palace a number of years ago on business and really liked it. A short walk over to the Marketplace which I enjoyed. Going to the parks was not part of this trip so can't comment on the rest of your questions.

 

[Lynne M]

I'll move this over to the Orlando Hotels and Attractions board.

 

[ducky_love]

You have NOTHING to worry about. You are at the nicest Downtown Disney resort, IMHO. They hotel is beautiful, modern, and has many amenities. As for a Disney hotel to compare to.. I would think they compare to The Contemporary.

I know they get the Disney loop channel and have limited transportation to the parks. I'm pretty sure they consider DTD walking distance as it is right there with Saratoga Springs but I think it is a good hike. (but I live in FL - we drive EVERYWHERE! )

I wouldn't worry. You'll be at a very nice hotel!

 

[2cdnprincesses]

The Buena Vista Palace is quite nice. We've stayed at a few different Disney Deluxe resorts before, but we prefer staying off-site now for the better value! The hotel is of course not as "Disney" as the Disney resorts, but we found it really convenient to be right across the street from Downtown Disney. The BVP also has a character breakfast buffet on Sundays. We booked a package including breakfast when we stayed there, and the character breakfast was part of the package too!

 

[strawberryblonde]

We were there just last week, 10/23/10-10/30/10. My DH had a conference there as well, so it was paid for. I was leary because of the "Palace" in the name .

The good :

LOCATION!! Loved it. Quick walk to DTD (I do enjoy walking though, I hate to find a parking place). We did this trip without a rental car. We even walked to the crossroads because the kids wanted to eat at Taco Bell and I wanted to pick up some more cereal and soymilk at Goody's grocery store (this was 3 very long blocks). There are sidewalks to either location, very safe.

BEDS!! So comfortable, and I loved the pillows too. My son was asking if we could take a few of the pillows home, they were fab.

VIEW!! If you are in one of the towers facing Epcot. We were only floor 8, would have loved to have been higher, but 8 was high enough to see the fireworks at Epcot AND Magic Kingdom. On nights when MK had their fireworks at 9pm, we were able to see both shows at once from our balcony. I watched in my robe

Elevators are fast and plentiful, never seemed to have to wait. Folks are friendly. Little gift shop had official Disney merchandise and workers wore lanyards with Disney trading pins for trading. There is a decent sized fridge in the room. The pool was an older style, no zero entry...which could be a minus for many. My DD loved it though, because it had such a deep end, 6 1/2 feet deep, and many of the newer pools don't get that deep anymore. She also loved the waterfall that seperated part of the pool that was in the shade.

The not so good:

Place had a bit of a musty smell throughout and the lobby and other areas felt a bit dated. The carpet was quite worn in many areas. Bathroom/vanity/entryway area was quite small and cramped feeling. No early entry nor extended hours. The housekeeping staff could be quite loud early in the morning, right outside our door and they woke me up a few times. I thought it was some families yelling, so I peeked out, and was surprised to see some staff talking louding together as they loaded up their carts for the day.

I slept great in their beds every night. Enjoyed fireworks from my balcony many nights. My DD loved their pool, and it wasn't crowded. We walked over to DTD for dinner many nights. The kids enjoyed T-Rex cafe and my DH and I had an adults' only night at Raglan Road which we loved. We got a great table, had fantastic food, enjoyed chocolate drinks (chocolate martinis for me and double chocolate stout for him) and got to walk back to our hotel hand in hand with no worries. Picked up some icecream to share at Ghirardelli's and kept walking. Wolfgang Puck's express has some amazing pizza.

Enjoy your trip!!