VolcanoJen
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Feb 7, 2001
- Messages
- 23
Hola, DISBoarders! Welcome to my (loooong!) review of the wonderful Hilton in Downtown Disney!
She came down from Cincinnati... to arrive at the Hilton Downtown Disney on Sunday, February 9, 2003. Checked in at 4:00 pm. No problems, no line. Requested a room with a view, smoking, king bed. Was informed that all smoking rooms are on the 2nd Floor and that no kings were available. Didn't argue and moments later received our key and walked up the stairs to check out the room. No mention of any resort fee, by the way, at check-in. The room was smallish, in my opinion, two double beds, mini-bar, 25" TV, in-room safe ($4.00 per day). The beds were comfy and the pillows were wonderfully fluffy! A myriad of Disney material was available in the small portfolio handed to me by the front desk, and there were more Disney folios scattered about the dresser. I was pleased to find the Disney resort channel on the rather weak cable television. Nice to get our "Zippidy-Doo-Dah-Tip-For-Today" every morning! View was of the pool and palm trees; really quite nice and provided a pleasant surprise! We settled in and then made the quick walk to Downtown Disney for a wonderful dinner at Fulton's. Made it back to the room and enjoyed the sounds and sights of the Pleasure Island Midnight Celebration fireworks from the comfort of our room window.
All in all, I'd say the Hilton can't be beat for the $60 Priceline price I payed. The location is perfect; we stayed for 5 nights and we found the Downtown Disney location to be perfect for our needs. We're business travellers and find Hiltons to be unmatched in service and amenities, and weren't at all disappointed by this location. It's a quick walk to the action; just go out the back way around the pool to a lovely walkway, and then dash across the four-lane road and you're Downtown! Location served us well in terms of shopping, dining and late-night fun!
A few words of caution, though: We've stayed at Disney's Polynesian before, and in comparison, if you're looking for the fabled Disney Magic, you won't find it here. This is decidely a convention hotel, and even while we were there, it was swarming with business-types who crowded the bar and lobby areas. For our needs, though (two adults, 30-something, no children) it was absolutely perfect. Housekeeping was excellent, we tipped daily and received a nice, fresh assortment of Neutrogena toiletries in our bathroom consistently along with a hand-written "thank you" note accompanied by mints. We never made use of the safe or mini-bar, but our room was convenient to the ice machine and the deep-dish sink made a perfect 6-pack beer, soda and water cooler! We enjoyed room service breakfast one morning, which was exquisitely served, as is to be expected in a business hotel of the Hilton class. We also ordered a large pot of coffee each morning to supplement the in-room 4-cup maker.
The hot tubs are highly recommended! They are behind the ample pools, and are lavishly landscaped with private, lush palm trees and bushes, and romantically lit at all hours. On our last night we did find the hot tub overwhelmed with children, but we were quite exhausted by then and did not mind. The pools were truly lovely and we would have enjoyed them, were it not for the low nighttime temperatures. Brrrrr! And we're from the north!
One important note: We were not charged the Resort Fee that many have noted. I self-servingly neglected to mention this upon check-in, and our desk clerk didn't mention it either. Our folio did mention the fee ($8.95/day in our folio) but it was not charged to our account. Priceline rules! We enjoyed daily replenishment of coffees, USA Today room delivery, and free local calls without incurring any sort of resort fee. Important note for the cost-saving wicked among us! You also receive an Orlando Sentinel when you order any sort of room service; we're newspaper readers and found this quite enjoyable.
The buses to the Disney attractions were consistent and enjoyable. All in all, it took us 20 minutes total to arrive at the Magic Kingdom (we spent most of our time at Universal; I'm posting that trip report to the Universal boards).
Were it not for Sheryl's wonderful BiddingForTravel.com boards, we wouldn't have ever considered putting in a $60 bid for a Disney Resort, but I'm so happy we did! We had a wonderful, magical vacation at a First Class Hotel at rates you would expect to pay at any basic motor inn on International Drive. You can't beat the location and the service. Bid away for the Hilton, and be as ecstatic as we were at the results!
- Jennifer in Cincinnati
She came down from Cincinnati... to arrive at the Hilton Downtown Disney on Sunday, February 9, 2003. Checked in at 4:00 pm. No problems, no line. Requested a room with a view, smoking, king bed. Was informed that all smoking rooms are on the 2nd Floor and that no kings were available. Didn't argue and moments later received our key and walked up the stairs to check out the room. No mention of any resort fee, by the way, at check-in. The room was smallish, in my opinion, two double beds, mini-bar, 25" TV, in-room safe ($4.00 per day). The beds were comfy and the pillows were wonderfully fluffy! A myriad of Disney material was available in the small portfolio handed to me by the front desk, and there were more Disney folios scattered about the dresser. I was pleased to find the Disney resort channel on the rather weak cable television. Nice to get our "Zippidy-Doo-Dah-Tip-For-Today" every morning! View was of the pool and palm trees; really quite nice and provided a pleasant surprise! We settled in and then made the quick walk to Downtown Disney for a wonderful dinner at Fulton's. Made it back to the room and enjoyed the sounds and sights of the Pleasure Island Midnight Celebration fireworks from the comfort of our room window.
All in all, I'd say the Hilton can't be beat for the $60 Priceline price I payed. The location is perfect; we stayed for 5 nights and we found the Downtown Disney location to be perfect for our needs. We're business travellers and find Hiltons to be unmatched in service and amenities, and weren't at all disappointed by this location. It's a quick walk to the action; just go out the back way around the pool to a lovely walkway, and then dash across the four-lane road and you're Downtown! Location served us well in terms of shopping, dining and late-night fun!
A few words of caution, though: We've stayed at Disney's Polynesian before, and in comparison, if you're looking for the fabled Disney Magic, you won't find it here. This is decidely a convention hotel, and even while we were there, it was swarming with business-types who crowded the bar and lobby areas. For our needs, though (two adults, 30-something, no children) it was absolutely perfect. Housekeeping was excellent, we tipped daily and received a nice, fresh assortment of Neutrogena toiletries in our bathroom consistently along with a hand-written "thank you" note accompanied by mints. We never made use of the safe or mini-bar, but our room was convenient to the ice machine and the deep-dish sink made a perfect 6-pack beer, soda and water cooler! We enjoyed room service breakfast one morning, which was exquisitely served, as is to be expected in a business hotel of the Hilton class. We also ordered a large pot of coffee each morning to supplement the in-room 4-cup maker.
The hot tubs are highly recommended! They are behind the ample pools, and are lavishly landscaped with private, lush palm trees and bushes, and romantically lit at all hours. On our last night we did find the hot tub overwhelmed with children, but we were quite exhausted by then and did not mind. The pools were truly lovely and we would have enjoyed them, were it not for the low nighttime temperatures. Brrrrr! And we're from the north!
One important note: We were not charged the Resort Fee that many have noted. I self-servingly neglected to mention this upon check-in, and our desk clerk didn't mention it either. Our folio did mention the fee ($8.95/day in our folio) but it was not charged to our account. Priceline rules! We enjoyed daily replenishment of coffees, USA Today room delivery, and free local calls without incurring any sort of resort fee. Important note for the cost-saving wicked among us! You also receive an Orlando Sentinel when you order any sort of room service; we're newspaper readers and found this quite enjoyable.
The buses to the Disney attractions were consistent and enjoyable. All in all, it took us 20 minutes total to arrive at the Magic Kingdom (we spent most of our time at Universal; I'm posting that trip report to the Universal boards).
Were it not for Sheryl's wonderful BiddingForTravel.com boards, we wouldn't have ever considered putting in a $60 bid for a Disney Resort, but I'm so happy we did! We had a wonderful, magical vacation at a First Class Hotel at rates you would expect to pay at any basic motor inn on International Drive. You can't beat the location and the service. Bid away for the Hilton, and be as ecstatic as we were at the results!
- Jennifer in Cincinnati
