first time at a Disney springs resort: will I be disappointed?

[sweetpee_1993]

Can anyone tell me what is the closest hotel in terms of walk time to Springs?

 

[sara_s]

The Wyndham is very close, 5-7 minute walk and the 1st entrance would be the end near Ghirardelli, The Void, Earl of Sandwich, etc.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

The Wyndham is very close, 5-7 minute walk and the 1st entrance would be the end near Ghirardelli, The Void, Earl of Sandwich, etc.

Thanks!

 

[reba2121]

You'll exit the hotel and walk along Hotel Plaza Blvd. When you get to the intersection of that street and East Buena Vista Drive, you'll cross using two pedestrian bridges that will lead you to the Marketplace Area of Disney Springs near Earl of Sandwich.

The general layout of the area. Map Courtesy of Bing Maps.

The sidewalk along Hotel Plaza Blvd is separate from the street and nicely landscaped. Image courtesy of Google Maps.

The pedestrian bridges make crossing the road simple and safe. They have elevators at all points of access. Here is an image from the construction period. (Images of the completed project are surprisingly hard to find.) The left side of the image is Disney Springs. It's hard to make out here, but there's also a bridge on the right side of the image. You will be using both bridges. Image courtesy of WDW Magic.

I've never timed it, but 13 minutes does sound appropriate. It's a pleasant walk, provided it's not raining.

This is great! Thanks so much!!

 

[writerguyfl]

Can anyone tell me what is the closest hotel in terms of walk time to Springs?

The Hilton Lake Buena Vista (labeled as Hilton located in the Walt Disney World Resort) and the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista are the closest. The Hilton Buena Vista Palace and Holiday Inn Lake Buena Vista are only about 5-8 minutes further. Honestly, though, all seven hotels are within walking distance.

If unfamiliar, the Wyndham complex is split into two hotels in their system. The Wyndham Lake Buena Vista is the tower. It has interior entry rooms that get decent reviews. The Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista consists of two multi-story buildings with exterior entry (motel-style) rooms. It does not get decent reviews.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

The Hilton Lake Buena Vista (labeled as Hilton located in the Walt Disney World Resort) and the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista are the closest. The Hilton Buena Vista Palace and Holiday Inn Lake Buena Vista are only about 5-8 minutes further. Honestly, though, all seven hotels are within walking distance.

If unfamiliar, the Wyndham complex is split into two hotels in their system. The Wyndham Lake Buena Vista is the tower. It has interior entry rooms that get decent reviews. The Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista consists of two multi-story buildings with exterior entry (motel-style) rooms. It does not get decent reviews.

Very helpful!

 

[123ltp]

Any guesses on if the teacher perks will be available again at the DS hotels next year? Were folks able to apply them after booking for stays this year? Trying to decide now about booking doubletree for our family of 5 for next June...

 

[LovesTimone]

We have stayed at Hilton, Holiday Inn, Best Western, and Doubletree Suites...
When we lived out of state, and were arriving later, we would stay on one of these for one night, normally one night at the beginning and then a couple of times one night at the end depending on flights, or if we were driving....

With a family I would vote for Doubletree Suites, King bedroom, with I think that the sofa is a queen bed pull out. The last time we stayed here, we had gotten in a traffic jam due to a terrible accident with fatalities that shut 75 down for almost 3 hours, we were lucky that we made it to a exit, and got gas, and grabbed some dinner, so instead of a 6:00 arrival we planned on we did not make it till around 10:00 pm. We were so tired, that we just grabbed the bags, hit the showers, and to bed... I really don't remember all that much about the room, It was clean, and what we needed for one night... We slept till like 8:00 am then checked out and headed for our Disney resort.

Our go to was Hilton, It is the closest to Disney Springs, and easy walking distance. Plus we are Hilton club members so we normally would get a good rate.

Holiday Inn and Best Western - for me just like anywhere in the US.

With us only staying one night most of the time, They gave us what we needed for 1 night.

I think it all boils down to what you want to spend, and more how you want to spend. If you can save a good chunk of cash, and maybe do something special in the parks, like a hard ticket event, dessert party, or fancy meal... it might be worth it...

If you decided to try it, then go with a open mind, if you go and are worried or hesitant or have already made your mind up... you might as well just stay on site...and save yourself all the stress.

 

[writerguyfl]

Any guesses on if the teacher perks will be available again at the DS hotels next year? Were folks able to apply them after booking for stays this year? Trying to decide now about booking doubletree for our family of 5 for next June...

Using archive.org (aka the Internet Wayback Machine), I looked at saw that the teacher's discount was offered in 2016, 2017, and again this year. Based on that, I'd guess that it will probably be offered next year.

As far as reservation modifications go, all major chain hotels require a room to be available in order to make a change. So, if a room is available at the discount rate when you make the modification, you won't have a problem. If there's not a room available, the modification will not be allowed. It doesn't matter that you are holding a room for your dates. (I've never come up with a good way to explain this concept. If this doesn't make sense, let me know and I'll try again.)

When it comes to the question of whether a hotel will offer a discount, there are two set-ups. In the first one, a hotel will offer a certain number of discounted rooms each night. In that scenario, the fact that you (or other people) already have a reservation won't make a difference. Once you see that the teacher's discount is available, you can (hopefully) modify your reservation and grab the discount.

In the other set-up, a hotel will only offer discounted rooms on dates when their software says they need help to sell out. After all, there's not much reason to offer a discount if you can fill the hotel at the "normal" rate. In that scenario, the fact that you (and other people) are holding a room at the normal rate makes it less likely that the hotel will offer a discount.

I spent over a decade working in hospitality, including a big stretch as a Revenue Manager. The Revenue Manager is the person responsible for getting the most rooms at the highest rates every day. (i.e. all this stuff) Every hotel I worked at or knew about from colleagues used the second method of discounting.

That said, it's impossible to know if booking one room is going to be the tipping point for whether a discount will be available on your dates. Given that you're a family of five and that limits your choices (without getting 2 rooms), I'd go ahead and book the DoubleTree Suites...provided the rate is something reasonable. Then, periodically check for discounts. If you haven't, sign up for MouseSavers, as they occasionally provide discounts at the DoubleTree Suites. Also, check the Disney Springs Hotels website for any discounts beyond the Teacher's one.

I just threw out a ton of information. Feel to ask for clarification if something doesn't make sense.

 

[123ltp]

That makes sense. I’m less concerned with the discount than I would be hoping to get the other teacher perks - free parking, coupon book, breakfast or something I thought I saw but now can’t find. Maybe I dreamed it lol most of my researching IS late at night lol

 

[writerguyfl]

I've never looked at that promotion as I'm no longer a teacher. (I was substitute teacher for a couple years when I was in grad school.)

For what it's worth, the DoubleTree Suites is my favorite hotel in the area. I've stopped counting, but I'd guess I've stayed there at least 100 nights there in the past five years. It's one of the quieter hotels I've visited...especially the bedrooms because they are further away from the doorway to the hall than you'd find in a non-suite hotel.

The staff is really good, too. I had a minor dental emergency once and had to check-out a day early. The Front Desk was very accommodating and someone even followed up with a "thanks for staying with us, we hope you're tooth is feeling better" email a few days later.

It may not be a luxury hotel, but it delivers on what they promise to provide: a quiet and clean suite; a better than average restaurant; good shuttle service to the theme parks; and a staff that knows what they are doing.