DoubleTree Disney Springs

[Mouse13]

Has anyone stayed at the DoubleTree in Disney Springs recently? I'm interested in your thoughts on the property as the latest reviews on TripAdvisor have been less than stellar. We have a stay booked there soon and I'm getting a little concerned. The TripAdvisor reviews indicate problems with the hot water, cleaning services and bus service.

 

[Aimeedyan]

We stayed there 2 weeks ago for the first time - stayed 3 nights. We got a great rate so the value was good but it wasn't a favorite.

We checked in online, chose our room, and arrived to find that they had no king rooms available. My DH is freakishly tall so a king is what we have to have to share a bed. Only once I told them we'd just stay 1 night and I'd find another hotel to move to our remaining nights (that did have a king room) did they offer to move us to a king room for the remaining nights.

The room was clean and spacious but one of the beds was so lumpy and lopsided I thought my DH might roll out of it. I took the good bed The remotes on both TV's didn't work. Called for a new one, maintenance took it with them, came back, only worked to turn it off and on but nothing else. Since we were moving rooms the next day, we decided to just control it manually.

Next morning at 9am, I went down to the counter to see about moving rooms (if we needed to bring our bags down, etc.) New group of front desk people were there and she jumped on the computer and asked what floor I wanted as I had my choice. Mind you - this was 9am in the morning and I had my choice of clean king rooms? But none last night? Just didn't add up. I mean, perhaps they had a large block of king rooms check out at 7am and already cleaned them?

Moved to a king room and the bed was flat but remotes on those TV's didn't work either - well, I could adjust the volume and that was it. We have a friend who works with Hilton and she said they are in the process of upgrading all the Doubletree room technology and that the TV's are past their prime. They were pretty old/pitiful. I know most people don't go to Disney to watch TV but we are frequent day guests and really do relax a lot in our room (which is why we like the suite set-up).

We did not use buses as we drove our own car. Room was clean and in good shape. Very quiet; I didn't pass a single guest in the hallways or hear anyone. We didn't have any issues with hot water. Parking was close and plentiful (they comped half our parking fee for the room issue - which was a nice touch).

I am not rushing back but I think it's good for what it is and better than others we've stayed at. Having 60 day FP and EMH was a nice perk!

 

[Mouse13]

Aimeedyan, thanks so much for your detailed review. It concerns me that they did not have your room type available when you checked in to the property. DH and I also booked a King bed. We can manage with 2 Queens but would prefer the King. We visit Disneyland frequently but have only been to Disney World a few times so we are definitely out of our comfort zone and this is a special birthday/anniversary trip. I think we'll give the hotel a try but I definitely have some concerns.

 

[Cloudy]

We stayed there last May as a family of four with 2 adult sons so we needed the space. For those needing room for more than 4 people, it is a affordable choice. Loved getting the 60 day FPs (never used the EMH). Took the bus twice. Service is every 30 minutes if I remember correctly but the bus does share with a total of 3 hotels so just OK service. No problems with hot water. Skipped cleaning as we are late sleepers but no problems asking for new towels. Room decor was a bit dark for my taste. Beds comfortable. We wanted and received 2 queens. Pool on the small side. Pool side restaurant was surprisingly good (limited hours). I think we actually had lunch there twice. Budget car rental in the lobby which came in handy. Needed a ride to the airport (and dinner the night before). Planned on Uber, but ended up renting a full size ext cab pickup (had my choice of 4 cars) for $35 at the last minute. Picked it up at the hotel, dropped it off at the airport.

Honestly my biggest draw back was the dark decor. It was so dreary in the rooms. Other than that it was nice.

 

[writerguyfl]

Next morning at 9am, I went down to the counter to see about moving rooms (if we needed to bring our bags down, etc.) New group of front desk people were there and she jumped on the computer and asked what floor I wanted as I had my choice. Mind you - this was 9am in the morning and I had my choice of clean king rooms? But none last night? Just didn't add up. I mean, perhaps they had a large block of king rooms check out at 7am and already cleaned them?

I used to work in hotels. The scenario described above is not unusual. Lots of guests depart early to catch a flight. Additionally, Housekeeping always starts cleaning check-out rooms before stayovers. Based on size, that hotel probably has 8 to 10 employees cleaning rooms on any given day. Even if they don't start until 8am, it wouldn't be unusual to have a bunch of clean and vacant rooms ready by 9am.

As a general comment, I've stayed at the DoubleTree Suites many nights. (I'm easily over 100 nights in the past 4 or 5 years.) I've always found it to be solidly run hotel. It's not a luxury property, but it's clean. It's certainly quiet, as Aimeedyan noted.

Until my last stay, I'd never experienced anything other than a minor problem. Things like TV issues, a safe that wouldn't open, or towels that didn't get replaced during cleaning. Those issues always got fixed with a single phone call.

On my last stay, the hotel was evacuated due to a small fire in a room. (I was told it was a cooking "accident" in a microwave that set off the fire alarm.) I ended up missing a dining reservation because we were outside for about 2 hours. Despite it not being their fault, the hotel management did offer compensation when I mentioned that issue when I checked-out. As a former hotel Night Manager, that offer impressed me.

 

[CheshireStripes]

A little nervous that our stay at Doubletree will lack a lot of the magic that an on premises location would but had to use points to make the trip work so crossing fingers that it’s still magical