Have questions for vacation home renters

[Nik's Mom]

Hi,
We're thinking of another large family vacation (14 people) for next year. We have always stayed on site before. We're thinking of renting a vacation home this time around. Here are my questions.
Which are the best in term of amenities ( such as private pool, close to grocery store) and closeness to WDW. How long does it take to get to the parks from these homes? How comfortable are these homes when filled to capacity (6 adults, 7 children)? Are the homes more affordable than staying on-site? Our budget will be tight this time around. Any comments would be appreciated.
Thanks!

 

[kaylajr]

We always rent a home when we go for several reasons

We like the space and privacy

our own private pool is a great +++ we never have to trip over anyone to swim

the cost is always less than staying on site


we also like to go to sea world and universal so the home is easier for that

this year we seriously looked at staying on site but we would have had to get a home away from home like the cabins

well we are renting a beautiful 5 bedroom home witha pool
and saving about 2000.00 dollars there are 6 of us going

we also like the kitchen is saves us money on food


most homes ( in my experience ) are located within 15 minutes to WDW and the WDW transportation can take longer than that

i also love having a washer and dryer
that means no suitcases of dirty clothes to go home to

i say rent a home and enjoy

there are several out there and sometimes looking fo one is overwelming
VRBO.COM is a great site and others here will recomend other sites
this year we found one from a nice person right here on the boards

Good luck and have fun "house shopping"

 

[debden]

Mmmmm,Now I have to be honest with you Nik's Mom, I like a home with a Large pool.I always ask the size.My preference is
30 by 15 feet.Room enough for everybody! Also a Jacuzzi for us adults who love to laze around in a 100 degree water with drink in hand. Oh and don't forget about a Large Extended Deck.Very Important to have space to spread out! Getting a home with bedrooms that have en-suites for the adults is another good idea IMHO. That way nobody has to wait to use the bathroom. Now we have been lucky when we've rented homes because the grocery stores have only been about a mile away.
Very convenient when you realize your out of something or you forgot an item...
There are alot of options in the WDW area for vacation homes but if you prefer a quieter area there are also ones further away.
You can look at the map at: www.orlandovillas.com/map.asp
And it will show you all the rental home areas near & far....
Vacation homes are definitely more affordable than staying on-site. We saved hundreds of dollars renting a home with my sister and her family compared to what we would have payed if we stayed onsite at Universal and we will never go back to a hotel!!
On-site or otherwise!!
Well,hope I did not ramble on too much.Just trying to help.
Good Luck,Debbie

 

[Nik's Mom]

Thank you for your responses! I could spend hours just looking at houses on that website. I have another question. If we are planning on going in June, when should we book?

 

[tednvon]

Hi Niks Mom,

For a very special trip with a large group I would not hesitate to recommend a large home in one of the two very close to Disney developements, Emerald Isand Resort and Formosa Gardens.
We owned a 7 bedroom 6 full bath in Emerald Island until very recently and had many families of 10 to 16 stay.
What they enjoyed the most was:

1. location....6 minutes to Disney

2. 3 King private suites

3. 3 other bathrooms for the gang. (plenty of bathrooms was always very important)

3. A game room for the kids and " big kids"

4. A jacuzzi along with a LARGE pool.

Both of these developments are new and have many 7 bedroom 5 to 6 bath homes available. They can be seen www.villadirect.com or www.vrbo.com and look for either of these developments in the "Disney area".

Make sure you get one with at least 5 1/2 baths as these are the really large homes. some 7 bedrooms have 4 baths and are quite a bit smaller.

Email me if you would like to discuss further. We sold our home so I am not trying to get your business just share information.

I am absolutely convinced that you can get from Disney to either of these developments quicker in your car than the buses will get you to your Disney hotel. It can't beat the monorail to the hotels but those hotels and 250 to 500/night for 2 beds and a bath and you can get a great home in either of these developments for $279 to $400/night.

Good Luck .....Grandpa Ted

 

[Gillian]

Renting a home for a group about that size is something we plan to do in the future. We (as just our family) have stayed both on & offsite, so we can compare. We've also stayed at Cypress pointe grand villas with MIL, SIL & nephews.

Whatever you decide, one of the main things that kept our group happy (besides 1 bathroom for every 2 people ) was having the ability to split up. Too much togetherness can be a problem! We had 2 cars for our 3 small families and that worked out well. If you stay in a home, I'd suggest 3 vehicles, for the greatest flexibility.

If your group has a big mix of ages, staying onsite can be very convenient, because of the transportation. It isn't faster, but it's always there if someone gets tired or wants to sleep in.

 

[Nik's Mom]

I'll definitely have to check out Formosa and Emerald Island. We want to be as close to Disney as possible. Is the traffic to and from Disney World very bad from those 2 communities?

 

[tednvon]

Hi again....traffic depends on 3 things. What time of the year you go, what time you head for the parks and do you know the secret shortcut via Sherberth road to Animal Kingdom and the rest of Disney?....
Major Holidays are very very busy and 8:30 to 10 am can be busy going to the parks on 192 going east.

Traffic will not be a big problem as a rule, however.

If you end up staying anywhere on 192 West of Disney the Sherberth Road shortcut is a great way to get to the parks. It is easy, simple and all the families who stayed with us loved it. If you decide to stay on 192 let us know and we will give you directions.

So traffic should be the least of your worries. Traffic will be an issue if you head for the beaches around Tampa, or if you go way north on I-4 to Orlando during rush hour. Othewise it is always busy but very few true major jams.....


Ted

 

[mbb]

Originally posted by tednvon
Hi again....traffic depends on 3 things. What time of the year you go, what time you head for the parks and do you know the secret shortcut via Sherberth road to Animal Kingdom and the rest of Disney?....

If you end up staying anywhere on 192 West of Disney the Sherberth Road shortcut is a great way to get to the parks.
Ted

A secret shortcut???
Oh, do tell!!

We're staying at Vistapark Resort...any tips?
TIA!!

 

[tednvon]

Hi..

looks like you will be coming on 192 east from Hwy 27....as you go past Orange Lake Resort on the left (by the way the Publix there is great place to get groceries!)start looking at the streets where you can turn left. When you get to Black Lake Road turn left and take Black Lake for about a mile or so. You will be driving adjacent to 192. When you get to the end of Black Lake turn left on Sherberth road. It is a tight little turn so watch for traffic on the left. Once on Sherberth you will be driving down a long straight road. One of the Disney animation buildings will be on your right. NOW look straight ahead. See the big green tree that is a little different color and taller than the others?..This is the Tree of Life in Animal Kingdom!!!!

At the end of Sherberth you will take a couple of curves and come to a stop light. Left is Animal Kingdom Lodge (and a don't miss buffet at Boma's) Turn right and Animal Kingdom will appear on your left. If you want to go to Animal Kingdom take the 1st left to the toll booths and parking lot. For all the rest of Disney go straight and follow the signs.
To exit Disney follow the signs to Animal Kingdom from inside the park. When you get to Animal Kingdom STAY LEFT to Animal Kingdom LODGE. Turn left at the stop light and and you are back on Sherberth to 192 and west to your home.


CONGRATS, YOU ARE NOW A DISNEY EXPERT TRAVELLER!!!!!

THIS LITTLE SHORTCUT WILL SAVE YOU LOTS OF TIME ESPECIALLY IF THE TRAFFIC IS BACKED UP ON 192.....


HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME...TED

 

[Nik's Mom]

Tednvon,
You are the best!!! Do those directions also apply if staying in Emerald Island and Formosa. We've narrowed our choice to those two communities. Also, what is the name of the closest grocery store? Thank you so much for all of your great tips!!!

 

[mbb]

You are amazing!!

Thanks!!!

 

[tednvon]

Hello, you are all too kind...

To get to Emerald Island and Formosa Gardens you will turn off 192 onto Formosa Gardens Blvd and both developements will be about 1.4 miles. When you get to Funie Steed Rd. go straight for FG and turn right for EI....both are very close.

To get to Disney turn right on hwy 192 and go about a mile to Sherberth Road and turn left...UNLESS there is a huge traffic jam going east on 192 toward Disney. It does not happen very often, but it can. If the traffic is backed up past Formosa Gardens BLVD simple turn left and go west (away from Disney) for about a mile and turn right on Black Lake Road you are going around all the backed up traffic.
When exiting Disney don't worry about taking Black Lake as the traffic is never that heavy heading out. Just take Sherberth to 192 and turn right to Formosa Gardens and you are home in less than 10 minutes guaranteed!!!!

For groceries...if you really want to stock up take 192 west to the Publix by Orange Lake. They are a little cheaper than the big supermarket on Formosa Garden Blvd just after you turn off 192. It is VERY handy though for just a small trip for groceries.

FYI, the Giordono's Pizza in that shopping center is excellent and easy carry out from FGardens or EIsland......Have a wonderful time...

Don't want to snoop too much, but don't short yourself on cars. With a large group much better to have several small cars than one or two big ones. People can come and go much easier. Remember, you will love the homes, but you are not within easy walking distance to anything except the clubhouse at EIsland (No clubhouse or central pool at FGardens)
Also, some folks may want to leave the park or take a side trip. Never have only big vehicle....


Grandpa Ted

 

[tednvon]

Hi...found a map that helps show the route a little better...scroll down to Map and it shows Emerald Island, and Black Lake Road and Sherberth off Hwy 192....Ted

http://www.floridasunvacationhomes.com/subdivision.asp

 

[Nik's Mom]

Thanks, Ted. That's the best map I've seen. I'm going to save that site for future reference.

 

[mbb]

 

[UKDEB]

Originally posted by tednvon
do you know the secret shortcut via Sherberth road to Animal Kingdom and the rest of Disney?....

Ssssh, Ted! It won't be a secret if you tell everyone .

As you can see from my signature, we've stayed at FG many times. We love the proximity to WDW and the quality of the homes. You've already got some great advice, but I just wanted to add links to a couple of my favourite sites:

FRbVO

VR360

 

[merrywether]

The Indian Ridge development is also just minutes away from the "secret, but not really" Sherberth Rd. shortcut. We've stayed in that development several times now and really like it. Lots of the websites mentioned in this thread have homes in that development.

 

[Gary Lopez]

Hi,
We're thinking of another large family vacation (14 people) for next year. We have always stayed on site before. We're thinking of renting a vacation home this time around. Here are my questions.
Which are the best in term of amenities ( such as private pool, close to grocery store) and closeness to WDW. How long does it take to get to the parks from these homes? How comfortable are these homes when filled to capacity (6 adults, 7 children)? Are the homes more affordable than staying on-site? Our budget will be tight this time around. Any comments would be appreciated.
Thanks!

I would suggest Emerald Island, Windsor Hills or Windsor Westside. All are on the West side of 192 / Disney which is very tourist friendly. Each of these Orlando vacation rental area communities (technically they are all in Kissimmee) have plenty of large homes (six to nine bedrooms) where you can accommodate the whole family and all are gated and guarded with incredible club houses. There are over 100 vacation home communities, but these have the location.

 

[Kat-n-Mouse]

We've been renting vacation homes in Kissimmee for 25+ years. Most recently we were renting in Windsor Hills and Reunion and now we actually took the plunge and bought a 6BR in the new Encore Club. We used Jeeves Florida Rentals when we were renting - they always had a great selection of homes in various high end communities. You can get a 6BR 6 bath house with waterpark, private pool, full kitchen etc. for the price of two regular hotel rooms. The Encore Club has all the amenities of a 5* hotel, waterpark, resort pool, restaurant, bar, gym, daycare, shuttles, concierge, check-in etc. and you get a full service home with a private pool. Best of both worlds. Windsor Hills is a more affordable choice with nice size homes and a nice resort style pool. Reunion has high end amenities and golf with some major luxury mansions to 2 BR condos. Something for everyone. There are a ton of rentals out there. It's a great way to vacation.