Did anyone stay at the Disney Inn?

Sleepy

<font color=royalblue>I'll have to remember that o
Joined
Mar 9, 2000
Many of us now stay at this hotel, which is currently named Shades of Green. We know the history behind the hotel, but there is little info in the form of pictures from when it was the Disney Inn. Exactly how did they transform this hotel to give it a Snow White theme in order to attract families? I have seen pictures of the entrance sign and the welcome pamphlet, but what else was done? For example, did they have characters greet guests, or pictures on the walls? I am bored and was curious.
 
It was the The Golf Resort and renamed The Disney Inn. Back in the early 80's it was always available - the only resorts back then: Contemporary, Polynesian, Fort Wilderness Trailers (now Cabins) and Camping. They seemed to have a hard time getting guests to book the Golf Resort - even though it had very nice large rooms. We certainly never wanted to stay there - did go over to visit, but when we had CR or Poly there was nothing enticing about The Golf Resort - or after the name change. I have some of the guest info Disney sent out back then (was wonderful!) with pics, but it is packed away.

Maybe someone will have some pics to post.
 
I stayed there in 1981, when it was the Golf Resort. My grandmother had a heart attack. My father and I flew down to Florida to be with her. She made a wonderful recovery, was released from the hospital the day after we arrived, and kicked us out of her condo! She probably thought it was too stressful to have people around. Since we had flown all the way down to Florida, and it was January, we didn't want to turn around and fly right back. My Dad called and we got a last minute reservation at this hotel. We didn't take pictures of the hotel, though. I'm sure he would have tried to get us into the Contemporary first, but it probably was booked.
 


We stayed there when it was both the golf resort and the disney inn. It was a cheaper alternative to the monorail resorts, was there pre-GF, and frankly, was a nice option. I definitely don't have pics - they're in a box somewhere back home . . .
But I also do not remember a whole lot of Snow White theming as the Disney Inn. Sleepy was on the sign I think. And there were little touches here and there, but nothing like what you'd expect today for theming. The pool was pretty simple - had a small set of fountains in it.
We liked it as an alternative due to pricing, availability and location - MK was (and is) our favorite park.
 
We stayed there too. It was a very peaceful place. They had rockers and served free lemonade and cookies on the porch in the afternoon. The pool was small though. I really liked the Inn.
 
Thanks everyone for your replies.

Here are some pics of the hotel before the major renovation a few years ago. If anyone has time, could you look at them and tell me if the decor is the same as it was as the Disney Inn? Scroll down to the 3rd subheading for pre renovation pics.

http://allears.net/acc/g_sog.htm

CindyIsMyFave- These? http://www.2719hyperion.com/2009/03/buena-vista-obscura-golf-resort.html They are not there anymore.

cindym- rockers, lemonade and cookies gone. Pool still small. They have one shaped like Mickey's head too.

Best Aunt- Sorry your trip could not have been on better terms.

Minnie&Nana- Lack of monorail was what made it fail. I have read much history of this location, but pictures are rare.
 


We stayed in the summer of '93 before the transformation. Even though it was an MK resort, it felt remote and, for all that, cozy. The rooms were even bigger than the Polynesian and CR's, and sported a bed-and-breakfast vibe quite foreign to WDW. The Garden Gallery was a decent all-purpose restaurant (French-fried ice cream!). You walked to the Polynesian for all your transportation needs.

There's nothing quite like the Disney Inn in the WDW resort roster.
 
I stayed there in 1988 for a school event with 3 other high school kids. Growing up in FL, I had been to Disney many times, but never, ever heard of the Disney Inn. I remember it was really quiet, because we seemed loud even to ourselves. We were there in mid June and it was pretty empty. The lobby would be empty at 4-5pm when we would pass through to change before hitting the parks. On the other hand... I remember the Poly and CR lobbies being absolutely PACKED at that same time. I do remember the tram to and from the Inn seemed super slow. We could walk faster to the Poly and catch the monorail than take the tram. Oddly, I do seem to remember it was a Tram and not a bus...

I never thought to take pictures, as I was too busy with the event and the parks. I don't remember any theming what so ever in the Inn. I remember it just seemed like a nice Holiday inn... down to the decor in the rooms, and carpet on the floor.

Thanks for posting the link to the pictures on allears.. the pre-renovation rooms look much like I remember them. Sorry I don't have any to add.
 
Many of us now stay at this hotel, which is currently named Shades of Green. We know the history behind the hotel, but there is little info in the form of pictures from when it was the Disney Inn. Exactly how did they transform this hotel to give it a Snow White theme in order to attract families? I have seen pictures of the entrance sign and the welcome pamphlet, but what else was done? For example, did they have characters greet guests, or pictures on the walls? I am bored and was curious.

We stayed there for our honeymoon in 1987. Like pp, we didn't know this hotel existed and only stayed here because the Poly and CR were booked up (This was pre-GF). But we weren't disappointed!

We thought the Disney Inn was a lovely resort. It was very quiet and peaceful. And like pp, I know I have some pictures in a box somewhere that includes the Disney Inn sign and some pics of the landscaping as well.

The rooms were quite large with a balcony, two Queen beds and a sofa bed. There was a small divider between the table/chair area and the sleeping area. The pics from allears.net are very much how I remember it.

My dh says that he is sorry that we won't be able to stay at the Disney Inn (SOG) for our 25th anniversary in 2012.
 
We didn't stay there till it was SoG, but it is a beautiful resort. It was actually a little too fancy for our taste (we like the crazy over the top Disney themes at the values.) But I think it's great it is there for military families.
 
Back in the 80's stayed there w/my parents when it was The Golf Resort. Couldn't get a room at any of the other onsite hotels, it was quiet & felt peaceful.
 
Thanks everyone for your replies.

Here are some pics of the hotel before the major renovation a few years ago. If anyone has time, could you look at them and tell me if the decor is the same as it was as the Disney Inn? Scroll down to the 3rd subheading for pre renovation pics.

http://allears.net/acc/g_sog.htm

CindyIsMyFave- These? http://www.2719hyperion.com/2009/03/buena-vista-obscura-golf-resort.html They are not there anymore.

Those are the fountains in the pool indeed! Exactly as I remembered them. Funny, those fountains and the front entrance really stick in my head. I would say from your other link that the lobby looks very much the same also. Hallways and room decor seem different to me, but I'm a little fuzzier on that.
 
A bit of an old thread but thought I'd add my 2 cents.

My better half and I spent our honeymoon here back in 1990, if memory serves it was call something like the Sleepy Time Inn or something like that, with Sleepy from the 7 dwarves as the mascot.

The rooms were a nice size, compared to our stay a few years later at the Port Orleans, and the resort was nice and quiet.

2 pools, one for the kiddos and the other for the "adults". Bar served food late night poolside, that was nice.

Pictures that are linked look familar, although it does look a bit dated now.
 
We stayed at Disney Inn on our very first trip ever to Walt Disney World in 1993. It was $181.00/night before tax. I had no idea everything Disney had to offer being a newbie. I would not have stayed there had I known of all the other options available and all the wonderful things the other resorts have.
Disney Inn had one sit down restaurant that I remember, only bus transportation and a mickey head shaped pool. The gift shop was tiny. The rooms were very nice but not well themed at all. Compared to everywhere else on property we have stayed, Disney Inn was lame but it made us keep coming back for more. Well over a dozen trips later in twenty years, we are now DVC members and love it!
 
I worked at Disney Inn for 6 months in 1988 from Jan - June. But had to quit to move back to Ohio. I was a housekeeper. I did enjoy it!
 

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