Hotels between Miami & Orlando???

[Sallieanne]

Can anyone help?
Not sure if there is anyone out there that has been in the same predicament as us, but we've ended up flying into Miami, landing around 5.30pm & need a hotel stop for 1 night enroute to Orlando. We originally thought Disney's Vero Beach might be an idea but as we will only be there to sleep, thought it would be a waste of our first visit there!!
Can anyone recommend a good standard hotel (preferably with a pool) that wont break the bank???
The 4 hour drive isn't really an option as it will mean arriving in Orlando around 11pm, which is 4am UK time!!!
Thanks in advance,
Sallie

 

[disneyholic family]

it depends which way you're driving up....if it were me, i'd go up I-95, but maybe you're planning on taking the scenic route up the atlantic coast (a good choice if you've never done that drive before)....i forgot the number of the coastal road....the interstate there is 95, but there's a scenic road...maybe it's A1 or something like that....you can go onto the internet map sites to find out (www.mapquest.com, yahoo maps, etc)....get a map of florida and look for the scenic route along the coast of florida....for some reason A1 rings a bell, but it could be anything...

anyway....you can go into www.tripadvisor.com, into their hotel search and punch in I95 or whatever route you'll drive and it will give you a listing of hotels along that route (we're driving down I75 next week all the way from detroit to orlando, so i needed a roadside motel for the night somewhere in tennessee or georgia.....)

this might not be the best way to find a motel, but it's one way of getting an idea.....
another possibility is to go to the websites of the major chains that have reasonable roadside motels and check out what they have in florida along the route you want).....reasonable chains are courtyard, hampton inn, holiday inn express, days inn, motel 6 ("we'll leave the light on for you" is their motto)....

i hope this helps....

 

[disneyholic family]

i just looked at a map of florida on www.mapquest.com and the road is indeed route 1.....
you could pick a city along the route (like boca raton) and look it up on www.tripadvisor.com

 

[Sallieanne]

Thanks for the info - I'll get onto it right away!

Sallie

 

[susan1]

hi
why not go up floridas turnpike. a toll road yes, but a very fast direct road from miami to orlando, like our motorways they have service sta\tions and sign post for turning off to hotels/motels. the a1 and i95 will take a long time to travel.

 

[disneyholic family]

hi
why not go up floridas turnpike. a toll road yes, but a very fast direct road from miami to orlando, like our motorways they have service sta\tions and sign post for turning off to hotels/motels. the a1 and i95 will take a long time to travel.

or you could take the toll road in one direction and the scenic route on the coast in the other direction....

 

[mickg7dyd]

Hi,
We flew into Miami last Xmas and stayed at the Best Western Thunderbird on Miami Beach. Nothing spectactular but cheap enough at $55 per room. Drove up on I95 next day after a good nights sleep.

Mick.

 

[wilma-bride]

I would look at hotels around the Fort Lauderdale area. It's a short drive from Miami but far enough out that you won't have to worry about Miami traffic the next morning (although, if you're anything like me, you will be up and out before most of Miami is even awake).

There is also Hollywood (again, just outside of Miami). It's a really nice area and should have plenty of options. Friends of ours have stayed there but only at the Hard Rock Hotel which would probably, again, be uneconomical for somewhere just to sleep.

hi
why not go up floridas turnpike. a toll road yes, but a very fast direct road from miami to orlando, like our motorways they have service sta\tions and sign post for turning off to hotels/motels. the a1 and i95 will take a long time to travel.

I would not use the turnpike personally. partly, because it is cashless tolls within Miami-dade coutny which, depending on what rental company you are using for your car hire, could prove costly, especially if you aren't planning to use toll roads for the rest of your stay (companies like Dollar you pay a charge per day for the duration of your rental, although some companies you pay a charge per toll plus an admin charge). If you plan to go this route, I would check out the rental company's policy on toll charges.

 

[chmurf]

We originally thought Disney's Vero Beach might be an idea

The 4 hour drive isn't really an option as it will mean arriving in Orlando around 11pm, which is 4am UK time!!!

going the scenic route on US1/A1A to Vero Beach and shooting straight up to Orlndo on I95 would probably not make much of a difference
If going to Vero Beach was acceptable, driving time wise, then Orlando is just a stone's throw farther.

If you feel like you need to rest before driving up, then places like Fort Lauderdale are nice.
I personally wouldn't stay in the main miami area (miami beach for example)
It can be a zoo in the evening. And the next morning, you'll be tempted to visit. Before you know it you'd be as tired as on your arrival night, and you'd still have to drive up to orlando. It's a double edged sword.
Staying a bit up the road, like West Palm Beach, Boca Raton or Ft Lauderdale will probably be easier (and cheaper) than in Miami itself. (IMHO)