Calling all experts!!

[walls1999]

We are looking for a huge house at 7 bedrooms. There will be 14 of us!! I have found a thousand of them. I am just having some trouble trusting anyone. Where is the closest resort to WDW? Are there certain companies or people I should steer clear of? I just want a clean house that is well stocked. I don't want to have carry towels from home! Any information would be great!! Thanks!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

We are looking for a huge house at 7 bedrooms. There will be 14 of us!! I have found a thousand of them. I am just having some trouble trusting anyone. Where is the closest resort to WDW? Are there certain companies or people I should steer clear of? I just want a clean house that is well stocked. I don't want to have carry towels from home! Any information would be great!! Thanks!

I'm not sure I can answer you directly, but there are a number of scams out there. There are also a number of reliable companies too. As for the closest reort to WDW, that's hard to answer, since WDW property covers a huge area, and the parks are located well within WDW property. I think you'll just have to go by what the companies tell you is their distance to WDW, and guestimate from that which is best, or follow up with a Mapquest search to maybe the Magic Kingdom, or one of the many WDW resort addresses (there are 20+ resorts on property) Or other DIS-ers who know more than I do.

For us, we have found staying on property to be preferable. There are lots of others who will say they like having a house better, but we prefer to stay on-property. Two big reasons are the free transportation and extra park hours; they pay for themselves in our opinion.

I can tell you two of the closest off-property resorts are Caribe Royale (an all-suite hotel) and the Marriott World Center/Nickelodeon Family Suites by Holiday Inn. I can't say these are the least expensive choices, but they are close. There may well be others that are equally close depending on the direction you're entering from. There are also a string of resorts that are not Disney owned, but on Disney property. But these are all resorts, not houses or condos. As for houses, it would be hard to tell EXACTLY where the house is located. Many will be about a 15 minute drive or longer, though some might be less. Most of the really prime locations are bought up by the big hotel companies. There are a few condo properties located off 192, and there is one by the Prime Outlet Mall that is quirte close to WDW, but I don't know the names.

Last, you might just want to consider a cabin at FW - they are on property (DISNEY) - so they're very close, relatively inexpensive, have kitchens, and feature all the perks of being on-property.

 

[crjack]

Two developments that I know have 7 bedroom homes and are close to Disney are Emerald Island and Windsor Hills. Take a quick look at www.vrbo.com and review a few 7 brm homes in each resort to see if they appeal to you.

You will find lots of posts from people here who have sucessfully rented through an owner. You can also go through a management or booking company. It really depends on what you are comfortable with but all of the owners I have rented from have used a local mgmt company to address any issues on-site. We've rented two homes so far and never needed to call them but it was nice to know they were there if needed. We're renting our third home this summer.

Pay close attention to the bed/room layouts of each house. All will have a mixture of master suites and twin beds but it can vary from house to house how many of each and you may have a specific need with 14 people.

Good luck with your search.

 

[spiceycat]

here are some maps

http://www.1stfororlando.com/Location-map.htm

http://www.thedibb.co.uk/villa/map.htm

http://www.kissimmee-us192.com/orlandovacationhomes/bassrd.htm

so you have some idea of where you are looking

 

[Gillian]

I'm also researching large houses (nothing specific, just general looking around) and I like Emerald Island and Windsor Hills. They are both close to Disney. I've driven by them, and stayed nearby in Windsor Palms, so I know that for sure.

I, too, would like to know about good management companies!

A big factor for me is the max # of bathrooms, several king beds, and enough room for the older teens in our group. No sleeping in the living room. A games room is interesting, because it gives you another hang out area.

It seems as though the homes in Emerald Island have more bathrooms (and more space overall) than the ones in Windsor Hills. For 14 people I'd want at least 4 bathrooms.

 

[stargazer556]

I gained quite a bit of info from this board planning our recent trip and hope this post can be of help to someone.

We just returned home from our vacation - rented a house in Windsor Palms through Mark at Romancing the Mouse.

The house was nicely furnished and clean. The community pool and clubhouse movie theatre were a nice added bonus. We also loved having our own pool and hot tub.

We arrived on a Saturday and were met by Mark. Mark was very thorough with maps and info about the area. Provided a list of dvd's and playstation games available to borrow. Asked if we had any questions or needed any info that would make our trip more enjoyable. Mark and family live in the area and told us to call if we needed anything.

Mark's daughter baked chocolate chip cookies in our oven and brought a basket of muffins for us. There was even a vase of fresh roses on the counter.

The service offered by Mark and family was outstanding.

You may want to check out these homes before making a final decision. We were very happy and had a wonderful vacation.

Alison