Cheap-need reviews, recommendations (not to mention $$$) :)

[Debbie]

Planning a trip that can only be a go if it is cheap beyond all imagination. Could I please get some feedback on Econo Lodge Maingate, Four Points Sheraton Lakeside, Holiday Inn Nikki Bird (not Kidsuites-just Standard) and Hampton Inn at USF (Kirkman Rd-not Sandlake). Having to convert everything into Canadian $$$ does not make a cheap trip easy, but . . . .

 

[BarryHom]

I stayed at the Four Points Lakeside a few years ago and I was happy with the room. You can find a room for that hotel off this site beginning at $49.

 

[MouseLover]

I have not stayed there myself, but I've read pretty good reviews of Magic Castle on this board. People have posted that it is clean, adequate, with continental breakfast for around $35 a night.

 

[lakoda]

Sorry, I don't have infor on the other places...The DIS homepage has the Howard Johnson Maingate East starting at about $29, depending on what day you go. If you're not picky...you might try Priceline. Ironically, this same hotel would have cost over $40 but we got it through priceline for 34.48 tax and fees included.

 

[robinb]

Priceline can be tricky for a Canadian, but you can still get a great deal. Check www.biddingfortravel.com for help on general Orlando bidding. The 3* Renaissance World Gate comes up very often at $35 per night US, the 3* Wyndham Orlando (on Sand Lake Rd) comes up between $30 and $35 US and the 2* Ramada Eastgate comes up at $20 US! Barry is the Priceline King of 1* and 2* hotels in Orlando . I stick to 2 1/2* and above.

Be aware that you cannot specify a particular hotel, but only an area, a quality level and a price. You also cannot cancel or change a hotel reservation once it's booked. The Bidding For Travel site will provide a lot of information for you before you bid.

http://pub109.ezboard.com/fpricelineandexpediabiddinghotels.showMessage?topicID=6.topic
and
http://pub109.ezboard.com/fpricelin...chesandproblems.showMessage?topicID=212.topic
will help you with specific questions on bidding from Canada.

 

[sammi]

We've stayed at The Magic Castle Inns and Suites 16 months ago and yes we thought it was a very nice (plain) but clean hotel with a fantastic free breakfast. And yes even with our terrible Canadian loonie we got a deal at $29.95 a night. PM me if you have any other questions and good luck Debbie!

 

[tink2dw]

Stayed at the Red Roof on Kirkman Rd. Don't know about the Hampton But........
Kirkman Road is the most hidden road in Orlando.
The landmark to know you are getting close is the tall round hotel that looks like a stack of records!!

But the good news is you will be right across the road from a Universal entrance.
And the Ponderosa has a excellant $3.95 buffet w/coupon breakfast [great food!! Just don't drink the water or use ice in your drinks. Fl. water has sulfer in it!] place a cross the road,it's in all the coupon books pick one up on the concrouse when getting your luggage.thereare very where

 

[emmalgin]

When are you going? That alone starts the savings opportunities.... I am going on Sunday and have had very good success in my search.

I used Ready Set Go off www.skyauction.com to get a 2-br condo at Orange Lake for $299/wk including taxes (low season). I am flying SW out of Buffalo and got the Friends fly Free ($448 round trip for 4). Using Airmiles for Car Rental, which is a very good deal from Airmiles..... If not obsessed with WDW only USF and Sea World have Canadian at Par Programs. Also got a deal on my Disney tickets. The best deal for Disney I have often been told is to go twice within 1 year (ie 51 weeks apart ) and buy the annual pass. If flying out of Buffalo, find hotels with Park and Fly deals that include 14 days parking and a shuttle.

As for Hotels, I'd certainly choose Hampton Inns due to their reputation, quality, guarantee and the free breakfast. The LBV, Maingate and one on Sandlake are all quite new.

 

[Debbie]

Good points!

Unfortunately, I can only go in the summer-August since I am taking a course May-July. We can't go late enough to pick up the value season, so that's another reason to have to look carefully. We can get the USF tickets at par (a great deal!) if I buy now, but can't do the Canadian Special on the parkhoppers. Much as I'd love to see the 100 Years Parades, I think that it may well be a no-go!

We've done the AP before, but honestly that is not in the budget right now. (But if I were to win the lottery...that would be our first purchase Do you REALLY need a ticket to win? ) With our family it would be $$$$$ (and that's leaving the 3 teens at home! YIKES!)

We'll drive to save the airfare, and, yes, I'm a disneyholic, and so are my DD's. Pitiful. ~ but what a vice!

Keep the help coming! Thanks!

 

[kilarney]

I have stayed at the Sheraton Four Points Lakeside, and really enjoyed it. It is not as fancy as a Sheraton by any stretch, but for a "motel" type property, it is one of the best. Don't let the "Lakeside" fool you. The lake is pretty pathetic. The rooms come with a fridge and safe. When I stayed there, the only non-smoking rooms had two double beds. I believe that some King bed rooms have no been made non-smoking.

The Econo-Lodge Maingate looks nice, but I have never stayed there.

 

[robinb]

The Econo-Lodge Maingate looks nice, but I have never stayed there.

Take it from me, the Econolodge is a dump! Avoid it at all costs! I paid $10 for 1 night via Priceline for the place and I felt like I was ripped off. My family stayed at the Sheraton Four Points at the same time and it was at least 100% better. The rooms were clean and they didn't smell.

 

[SouthernMom]

I just want to emphasize what robinb said ... do NOT stay at the EconoLodge. We stayed one night -- but only because we arrived soooo late and we were too exhausted to look elsewhere. I thought it was bad at 2:00 a.m., but when the light of day hit it ... it was even worse!!!! My husband got up at 6:00 to get us checked into another hotel (HI) so we could shower and get ready for the day. I wasn't ABOUT to use those bathrooms! I will say... this was about ten years ago, so it may have improved. However, my experience is that most places do not get better with time!

 

[BarryHom]

Wow, $10 a night! Why can't I get stuff like that?

Anyway, if you bid $20 in the West Disney area and choose a 1 star hotel, you can get the Sleep in Maingate. The rooms are small, but very clean. The rooms I've had there had a microwave and a fridge. The best thing was the free continental breakfast in the lobby. All in all, you can't beat these things for $20! I think regular rates for the place run around $30-$50. The place was about a 15 minute drive to WDW.

 

[Debbie]

Thanks for the comments/suggestions. One of thes reasons EconoLodge is on the list is because they apparently did a big renovation a year or two ago. What about the DIS's Howard Johnson? Any comments on that one? Keep convincing me that a trip like this can be done!

 

[leslieh]

I got this a few years ago on Priceline for 20.00 a night. Thats a good deal. I would not want to pay much more. Hopefully the road construction has almost ended. Thats a nightmare.

 

[disneyfan551]

In the past Magic Castle has been adequate, but this time we stayed at the Comfort Inn LBV, only 1/2 mile of DD, for $35/nite (aaa). It was much! better, and our friends were staying at M.C., and they changed hotels after 1 night. They said that it had really gone down hill! Check out the Comfort Inn, the rooms have a micro, and a refrig. The motel has 2 pools and 2 restaurants! And, we loved the location for the convenience & nice area!

 

[hercamore]

Did you see the post by disneyspells about Country Inn/suites calapsoy cay?

She said she had an entertainment rate of $39. This is for a brand new hotel with bkfst.


Herc.

 

[robinb]

One of thes reasons EconoLodge is on the list is because they apparently did a big renovation a year or two ago.

I was there in July 2001. It was still a dump! The stench from the hallway was enough to knock you over and the carpet was dirty and very worn. The room was a little better, but I would still not stay there ever again. On the positive side, the staff was very friendly.

FWIW, it was a 1* on Priceline and I got it for $10 because I used the then $20 AMEX bonus money .

 

[Lori of the Lodge]

Here's another option to consider.....

Just returned from 3 nights at the Radisson Resort Parkway. 1.5 miles from the WDW Maingate. It was what I consider to be a top-notch hotel. I got a great mousesavers rate of $59.00 per night. I just asked for the "MOUSESAVERS" rate. I also saw a link on this forum for a $69.00 rate.

The resort is very nice. The lobby is impressive and appears to be recently decorated with modern Italian furniture and marble floors. There is a cafe with a pizza hut in the main lobby. and a sports bar with a multi-screen TV wall.

Our room was clean and decorated similar to the lobby, with contemporary furniture and bright colors. IMHO the rooms were as nice or better than rooms in Deluxe Disney resorts. Our room had a king-size bed, a desk, a chair & ottoman and a pretty large television with Nintendo and a keyboard for WebTV. The room also had a safe in the closet that was large enough to accommodate my husband's laptop computer and my purse (very nice!).

There are 2 pools, the smaller pool is heated. The large pool has a great waterslide and a waterfall. There are also 2 hotubs, one has a waterfall with warm water cascading into it.

I would not hesitate to stay at the RRP again. The service and accommodations were wonderful and the location is aprox. 1.5 miles from the Disney entrance. It's literally a straight 1.5 mile drive down the road. (I'd guess that it took about 3-5 minutes for us to get from the Radisson parking lot to inside the WDW gate).