Holiday Inn Orange Lake Resort

[littlecc09]

What do you think of the place, I wish I would have found this forum before booking my trip yesterday. The good the bad? Thank you in advance.

 

[brajfamily]

Are you staying at the Orange Lake Resort or a Holiday Inn that is near it/part of it? I am not aware of a Holiday Inn on property. We have stayed at the actual Orange Lake Resort and love it. It is beautiful. We considered buying a time share but our real purpose in going to the Orlando area is to go to WDW so we like all the perks that come with staying on property. Go to tripadvisor and look at all the reviews and traveler photos. If you are at the actual resort, you won't be dissapointed! Enjoy

 

[Wishing on a star]

I am quite sure the OP is talking about Orange Lake.

It is actually a Holiday Inn related property, and is one of the flagships of the Holiday Inn Vacation (timeshare) Club.
I believe that 'Holiday Inn' is now a part of the resort's official name.

If you have not, you should go to tripadvisor and check it out.
Once you pull up traveler reviews, you can then click on Traveler Photos at the top of the page.

I have not been to OL, yet... We are booked for late May.
I can't wait!

I have done a lot of reading and research, and, Orange Lake seems to be great place!

I don't think one would describe it as plush or upscale. But is has a lot to offer! Think of it this way... It is not an exclusive four star Marriott. It is a timeshare resort. Four 'neighborhoods'. It is HUGE... You need a car to get from one section to another. This also means that it has a lot to offer.

Your experience at Orange Lake, (like many other large established properties) may depend on which section and which unit you get.

Do you know which section you will be in?
Is this an exchange, or are you renting directly thru OL?

The newest section is the River Island section. It has the lazy river, pools, slides, pool bars, etc... If you want a newer unit and a 'happening' place to be, this is it. Of course, the high demand means that it may be harder to find availability in this section.

West is the oldest, original, section.
It has been refurbished. And many of the units are nice.
However, it is my understanding that you probably don't want to be in the main 'Clubhouse' building.

East and North sections are lower rise buildings that seem a bit quieter and spread out over the golf courses.

I requested North section for this reason.
I thought that our unit could be a retreat from the hullaballoo and overstimulation of all the Orlando area attractions.

Hope this helps!

 

[littlecc09]

I just called over there, and we are in in the West Village Club House. I guess that is the oldest part according to the pp.

We are however, renting a car, so I suppose driving to the other parts is what we will be doing.

 

[steelebug]

Yes Orange Lake is now part of the Holiday Inn family. They are building a new Holiday Inn on the property. We have stayed at Orange Lake. We love it there. I am not sure if the Club House rooms have been renovated yet? We have stayed in a one story(2bd/2ba), and a multi story 2bd/2ba in the West Village that were both wonderful. We have also stayed in the River Island section which was also nice. Our kids prefer Splash Lagoon to River Island. Have a wonderful time.

 

[Detailor]

We've stayed at OLCC a few times and have enjoyed each stay quite a bit. And I prefer staying in the West Village section despite it being older than much of the resort. Different parts of the West Village are convenient to lots of the resorts amenities ranging from the huge pool area at the clubhouse (where you'll check in) to the putt-putt mini golf, tennis courts, restaurants, etc., and some part not far from the North Village splash pool area. It's a fairly long walk from the East Village section and definately far from the new(ish) River Island section.

This is a nice resort - you should enjoy your trip.

Dick Taylor

 

[Wishing on a star]

I am thinking that all of West has been refurbed.

If you have a larger unit in the Clubhouse building, you could be pleasantly surprised. I have heard a few good reviews.

 

[carlbarry]

I stayed at Orange Lake in December, 2 bedroom in the West Village, but in a building near the entrance. The Club House adjoins one of the nicer pool areas, and a "beach" built on the lake. However, reviews of Club House rooms on TripAdvisor--always studios, as far as I can see--are usually negative. And I know that every time a Club House timeshare comes up on ebay, the starting bid is $1, and they never get sold!
I think you'd be better off trying to transfer to one of the townhouse units in the West Village. In any event, I'm sure you'll have a great time at Orange Lake; it's a fantastic place--just wait until you see River Island!

 

[Wishing on a star]

I am optimistic about our upcoming stay at Orange Lake!

If I am guessing correctly, the studios in the clubhouse building are tiny, and there may not have been a lot that they could do with them when they renovated.

I have heard a few reviews that talk about how the building is older, but the inside of the larger units have been refurbed very very nicely.

OP, don't be too worried about West being the oldest section.
It has been refurbished!

You may wish to change your reservation, if possible, to a different building or section. But, like the PP said, you will have a great time!

 

[carlbarry]

As far as refurbed, the unit I stayed in, in a 3 story building (but I was on the ground floor) was beautiful refurbed, with a flat surface electric range, granite counter tops, flat screen TV in the living room, etc. I walked into a couple of the single-story town house units while they were being cleaned, and thought the layout/refurb was not as nice as the unit I stayed in.
What I've read of the studios in the Club House is that they're small, have small, unopenable windows high up on the wall. As I stated above, I have to assume they're less desirable, as they go begging when up for auction on ebay.

 

[dantedisney]

We own a timeshare (July) at Orange Lake's River Island. We have a 3 BR lock-off unit that faces the lazy river. The resort is a great place to visit and my daughters (9 and 3) look forward to visiting every year.

You will get called for a "sales" pitch during your stay... we usually attend to get discounted tickets to Disney!

You'll have a great time. Have Fun!

 

[carlbarry]

We own a timeshare (July) at Orange Lake's River Island. We have a 3 BR lock-off unit that faces the lazy river. The resort is a great place to visit and my daughters (9 and 3) look forward to visiting every year.

You will get called for a "sales" pitch during your stay... we usually attend to get discounted tickets to Disney!

You'll have a great time. Have Fun!

I stayed via an RCI trade. To attend the timeshare presentation I was offered $50, discounted tickets, and a discount book. The discounted tickets could be purchased for less elsewhere, and the discount book was not a big deal, either.

 

[lilmrsellis]

Has anyone stayed in a 1 bedroom? It seems all the reviews you can find are for studios or 2-3br. We are staying in a 1 bedroom and looking for feedback.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Has anyone stayed in a 1 bedroom? It seems all the reviews you can find are for studios or 2-3br. We are staying in a 1 bedroom and looking for feedback.

That would all depend on which section.
Do you know which section you will be at?

 

[carlbarry]

Why not try their website, www.orangelake.com ? Here is the link to the 1 bedroom page:
http://orangelake.com/tour_our_resort/one-bedroom_villas.html
And here is the link to the studio page:
http://orangelake.com/tour_our_resort/studios_and_suites.html
Note that the 1 bedroom page says that the plan shown is typical of 1 bedrooms in the North Village.

 

[dantedisney]

I stayed via an RCI trade. To attend the timeshare presentation I was offered $50, discounted tickets, and a discount book. The discounted tickets could be purchased for less elsewhere, and the discount book was not a big deal, either.

Can you share where I can get "discounted tickets" for Disney?

Thanks!

 

[carlbarry]

Can you share where I can get "discounted tickets" for Disney?

Thanks!

Orange Lake didn't offer discounted tickets to WDW. The discounted tickets were to, for example, Sea World, and I had already pre-purchased for less.
As to discount WDW tickets, they are difficult to come by. If you or someone you know works for Siemens, they offer discounts to employees. Otherwise, I suggest you go to www.mousesavers.com and check there. There are websites that give a discount on multi-day tickets. Lat summer, before the price increase, I purchased a 10 day non-expiring parks and more ticket at ticketmania.com, and saved a bit.

 

[simonsmom]

try greatorlandodiscounts.com

 

[lakerz5]

I didn't realize that this resort was a Holiday Inn affiliate.

How far is this from WDW???

 

[lawgs]

I didn't realize that this resort was a Holiday Inn affiliate.

How far is this from WDW???

OLCC oh.... i mean Holiday Inn Vacation Club at Orange Lake actually is adajacent to Disney's Animal Kingdom

there is a back way into WDW using sherbeth road which then brings you close to the entrance to Animal Kingdom


your sons might enjoy the River Island that they have there ( you do not have to stay in River Island to use it )

do not know how points work, but since we are Global Access or were members, they now say we can use our points in the Holiday Inn Network and we have been assigned GOLD status within "Priority Club: ....not sure it is gold but that sticks in mind..

so you might be able to use your points to get a 2 bedroom at Orange Lake ( not sure how the cleaning fee works when you exchange in on points, but if you are over your housekeeping limit using OLCC Global ...now Holiday Inn Vacation Club points... they charge a fee of 114$ even if you only stay two nights for cleaning ) , hopefully, people using their points from the Holiday Inn points program will not be charged that .....