Holiday Inn Resort Lake Buena Vista info?

pjhootch

DIS Veteran
Joined
Apr 5, 2005
Messages
500
Does anyone have thoughts about or experience with this hotel? We aren’t needing anything fancy at this point. I am canceling an onsite package and decided to really shift money from lodging to other budget areas. We have a rental car and are all grown ups. The three kids are college age and can Uber around if they want to stay late in the parks. I booked a kids suite and the three grown kids will each have a bunk bed. They still run so hard all day they drop like rocks at bedtime anyway.
 
They have a daily resort fee. Theme park bus schedule is limited. Plan on driving and playing Disney for parking.
 
Yes thank you. I will have to pay the parking fee for the parks and the daily resort/parking fee at the hotel. I went and looked at the Mousesavers description. That was helpful. I don't know how I missed it to begin with since I used a Mousesavers link to get a discount on the hotel price. :-) We were going to do a big blow out vacation with a package at a Disney vacation condo with dining plan and park hoppers, but I am scaling it back and shifting things around some at this point. The kids are more focused on our meals and rides than where they sleep. For my own piece of mind I like them each to have their own bed. Even though they are twenty somethings they all still do the "she is touching me" thing. I think it amuses them to bicker, but it drives me out of my mind.
 

I stayed there a few years ago when it was the Sheraton Safari. It's about 1.5 miles to Disney Springs. Place is fine for a hotel. No real landscaping or theming. Some places to eat within walking distance. Steak N Shake, Giordano's pizzza, I Hop....Restaurants in Crossroads shopping center are probably walkable.
 
This place used to be the Sheraton Safari? Wasn't that the hotel that had the big snake slide into the pool? We stayed there 12 or 13 years ago- and for some reason I thought that was across I 4 by Palm Parkway.
 
My bad. I have them confused. I'm not sure if I stayed at the hotel you booked. I think I stayed there one night using Priceline. It was OK. I don't remember it being great or bad. There isn't that much in easy walking distance.

Add the resort fee, Disney parking and an extra 10-20 a day for Uber. 5 adults, I'd try to find a place which offers a free breakfast.
 
It used to be the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort before it was renovated and got a different name.
 
It used to be the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort before it was renovated and got a different name.
That's the place I stayed one night. Renovations were almost finished but name hadn't changed. Not great, not bad. They kinda lie, it's not a mile to all the theme parks. It's probably a 2 mile walk to DS.
Did you price 2 rooms in a Disney value? Are you staying a week? A 2 bedroom condo timeshare will give you more space, the bedding you're looking for and should cost less.

I understand the appeal of the kids room with bunk beds. Otherwise I'd suggest looking at other properties.
 
I would probably do 2 value rooms if they were available for our dates, but they aren't. We are going Dec. 17th-24th and have our plane tickets so the dates aren't flexible. Two of the three kids would have to share a double bed if we did that- but they would be in a different room so I wouldn't have to listen to them sparring with each other. We have two girls that are 10 years apart and the two youngest are 26 year old boy- girl twins. They still fight like 12 year old kids for their own amusement. Over the years we have stayed in just about every kind of on or offsite property you can think of except for the campsites.

We are staying for a full week but are a doing a couple of Universal days as well. We fly home on Christmas Eve early in the morning so that is not a park day. Since we will have a rental car anyway, I don't really care that it isn't too close to to Disney Springs or the parks. I know where the Sunspree is (was), although we never stayed there. The reviews are all pretty complimentary about it being clean, and that is important to me. The total cost for the room is $1112.00 for a week, including the daily resort fee. I am going to do 4 day 1 park per day tickets instead of park hopper tickets, since we have gone over our plans and don't really rely on park hopping for any of our days. We would have hopped as a bonus- but are pretty content to not hop especially since they did away with the express bus from inside the parks. That was a big thing we were planning on originally.

The difference between our original package (with "free" dining) and our hotel and tickets doing it this way- is $4500. So out of that $4500 difference, we have to cover our meals and parking fees at the parks for 7 days. Pretty crazy. I was prepared to spend that much, but have to say the thought of spending less is also attractive. ha ha.

I am going to keep my eyes open for available on site value rooms, but so far, nothing has been panning out except the occasional available AofA Family Suite. Not really worth the $450 a night to me, to be honest and would be too tight for three grown kids on the pull out and murphy bed I think.
 
I would probably do 2 value rooms if they were available for our dates, but they aren't. We are going Dec. 17th-24th and have our plane tickets so the dates aren't flexible. Two of the three kids would have to share a double bed if we did that-.......
doing a couple of Unive anyway, I don't clean, and that is important to me. The total cost for the room is $1112.00 for a week, including the daily resort fee. I

The difference between our original package (with "free" dining) and our hotel and tickets doing it this way- is $4500. So out of that $4500 difference, we have to cover our meals and parking fees at the parks for 7 days. Pretty crazy. I was prepared to spend that much, but have to say the thought of spending less is also attractive. ha ha.

.
Given your comment regarding your kids sharing a bed I assumed one kid would get the extra bed in your room. Your sleeping arrangement if you booked 2 value rooms sounds better.
 
Given your comment regarding your kids sharing a bed I assumed one kid would get the extra bed in your room. Your sleeping arrangement if you booked 2 value rooms sounds better.

LOL. Given our experience with prior trips they would probably stay in one room together- unless they genuinely irritate each other and then one of them would show up at our door and want the extra bed. We have traveled all over the place together as a grown family- cruises, around the country- and that tends to be the pattern that has emerged over the years. We actually travel really well together and I am making it sound worse than it is. Twins are kind of a weird package deal and it doesn't appear to change much as they mature in every other way.
 
I would probably do 2 value rooms if they were available for our dates, but they aren't. We are going Dec. 17th-24th and have our plane tickets so the dates aren't flexible. Two of the three kids would have to share a double bed if we did that- but they would be in a different room so I wouldn't have to listen to them sparring with each other. We have two girls that are 10 years apart and the two youngest are 26 year old boy- girl twins. They still fight like 12 year old kids for their own amusement. Over the years we have stayed in just about every kind of on or offsite property you can think of except for the campsites.

We are staying for a full week but are a doing a couple of Universal days as well. We fly home on Christmas Eve early in the morning so that is not a park day. Since we will have a rental car anyway, I don't really care that it isn't too close to to Disney Springs or the parks. I know where the Sunspree is (was), although we never stayed there. The reviews are all pretty complimentary about it being clean, and that is important to me. The total cost for the room is $1112.00 for a week, including the daily resort fee. I am going to do 4 day 1 park per day tickets instead of park hopper tickets, since we have gone over our plans and don't really rely on park hopping for any of our days. We would have hopped as a bonus- but are pretty content to not hop especially since they did away with the express bus from inside the parks. That was a big thing we were planning on originally.

The difference between our original package (with "free" dining) and our hotel and tickets doing it this way- is $4500. So out of that $4500 difference, we have to cover our meals and parking fees at the parks for 7 days. Pretty crazy. I was prepared to spend that much, but have to say the thought of spending less is also attractive. ha ha.

I am going to keep my eyes open for available on site value rooms, but so far, nothing has been panning out except the occasional available AofA Family Suite. Not really worth the $450 a night to me, to be honest and would be too tight for three grown kids on the pull out and murphy bed I think.

I hear what you are saying, mine are all adults too, and we still travel together.

Also check in to StayBridge Suites. I just plunked your dates in and a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom with "kitchen" and living room came up to $157 per night. I've stayed in them, they are nice and recently renovated. The free breakfast there is great with lots of options. Evening reception. It is just north of Disney Springs just as Holiday Inn is just south. Walking distance to grocery store, many restaurants, my kids ended up walking across to Steak & Shake for LATE night milkshakes. Universal is literally minutes straight up the back road from there.

http://www.sborlando.com/photo-gallery.htm

http://www.sborlando.com/

- No Resort Fees
- Non-Smoking
- New Queen Sleep Sofas in Every Suite
- Free Wi-Fi and In Room Safe
- Spacious Family Suites (sleeps up to 8)
- Great Location to Orlando Area Theme Parks
- Free Scheduled Shuttle to Disney Parks
- Free Hot Breakfast Buffet
- Reception with Complimentary Beer, Wine, Sodas
and Snacks (Mon-Wed Evening 5:30 to 7:30pm)
 
Thank you Hopper Fan. I just changed our reservation to the StayBridge Suites! We will definitely have more room to spread out there and two bathrooms is a very good thing. When I put our dates in it said there was only one two bedroom left so I jumped on it.
 
Thank you Hopper Fan. I just changed our reservation to the StayBridge Suites! We will definitely have more room to spread out there and two bathrooms is a very good thing. When I put our dates in it said there was only one two bedroom left so I jumped on it.

Glad to help. We stayed a week with everyone happy to have own bed. Two in second bedroom, one on sofa bed. Kitchen area was great to stock drinks and other goodies. Really happy with breakfast, everything you could want, two buffet lines, make your own waffles and lots of rooms/space to eat. The staff there was great. I think it's a great location, especially if doing Universal and Disney. If you look at map, jump on Palm Parkway and take it straight up to the Universal parking garages, so easy.
 












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