Hotels outside of Disney

[monica9]

We are looking to stay offsite for our next trip. We normally stay onsite but last trip we weren’t planning on Disney parks so stayed at renaissance Seaworld and was obsessed. We decided last minute to do two days at Disney and the shuttle was a piece of cake. We loved the main lobby, the waterfall inside the lobby, the heated pool and the nightly pool movie nights. Unfortunately the price for that hotel is double the next time we plan on visiting. Don’t mind if the hotel is 20 minutes or less away from Disney. So looking for a hotel that has a similar vibe with:
a beautiful lobby preferably with a little water fountain
Pool bar
Heated pool with movie night
Shuttle to parks (not a must)
Priced at under $300/night.

Thanks!

 

[Lisa P.]

If you are not planning to travel during the summer, spring break, or during a holiday period, then you may want to consider a resort like Club Wyndham Bonnet Creek (Vacation Club). There's less restriction on rental dates at other resorts. The better timeshare resorts tend to offer nice, heated pools, a pool bar, and fun activities (like a movie night). Rare to find a decent shuttle to the parks and you would not get daily housekeeping, instead having a full condo with space, privacy, kitchen amenities, an en suite MBR, possibly additional BRs. Rental rates are usually less than 300/night, sometimes much less depending on the time of year.

If you want a regular full-service hotel with shuttles to the Disney parks (or at least to TTC), I'd look first at these Disney Springs area hotels which participate in Disney's Early Theme Park Entry. They're located on Hotel Plaza Blvd, which ends up at Disney Springs, less than a mile to the furthest hotel. Rooms commonly range from $130-$300/night, again depending on the time of year. Reviews for B Resort are not good but the others seem pretty good. I'm not sure which of these (if any) have a movie night. Check for any added resort fees before booking.

Hotel Plaza Blvd hotels, in order of proximity to Disney Springs Marketplace:

• Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace - Disney Springs
• Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Resort - Disney Springs
• Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• Holiday Inn Orlando - Disney Springs
• B Resort & Spa Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando - Disney Springs
• Drury Plaza Hotel Orlando Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs - opening Nov. 2022 or later

If you will not be traveling during prime time (like Christmas week or Easter week), also consider Marriott Orlando World Center or Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek. They are full-service deluxe hotels with beautiful lobbies and pool areas. Because they also have timeshare condos on the shared properties, they are more likely to offer access to additional family-friendly amenities and activities. The Christmas & Easter holidays are more expensive, of course.

Lastly, look into renting DVC points to stay at a Disney villa. The main negative is non-refundable deposit or difficult cancellation policies. HTH.

 

[DL1WDW2]

I was going to suggest the Gaylord Resort but getting hard to find a reasonable rate but this location is always amazing.

 

[monica9]

If you are not planning to travel during the summer, spring break, or during a holiday period, then you may want to consider a resort like Club Wyndham Bonnet Creek (Vacation Club). There's less restriction on rental dates at other resorts. The better timeshare resorts tend to offer nice, heated pools, a pool bar, and fun activities (like a movie night). Rare to find a decent shuttle to the parks and you would not get daily housekeeping, instead having a full condo with space, privacy, kitchen amenities, an en suite MBR, possibly additional BRs. Rental rates are usually less than 300/night, sometimes much less depending on the time of year.

If you want a regular full-service hotel with shuttles to the Disney parks (or at least to TTC), I'd look first at these Disney Springs area hotels which participate in Disney's Early Theme Park Entry. They're located on Hotel Plaza Blvd, which ends up at Disney Springs, less than a mile to the furthest hotel. Rooms commonly range from $130-$300/night, again depending on the time of year. Reviews for B Resort are not good but the others seem pretty good. I'm not sure which of these (if any) have a movie night. Check for any added resort fees before booking.

Hotel Plaza Blvd hotels, in order of proximity to Disney Springs Marketplace:

• Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace - Disney Springs
• Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Resort - Disney Springs
• Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• Holiday Inn Orlando - Disney Springs
• B Resort & Spa Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando - Disney Springs
• Drury Plaza Hotel Orlando Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs - opening Nov. 2022 or later

If you will not be traveling during prime time (like Christmas week or Easter week), also consider Marriott Orlando World Center or Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek. They are full-service deluxe hotels with beautiful lobbies and pool areas. Because they also have timeshare condos on the shared properties, they are more likely to offer access to additional family-friendly amenities and activities. The Christmas & Easter holidays are more expensive, of course.

Lastly, look into renting DVC points to stay at a Disney villa. The main negative is non-refundable deposit or difficult cancellation policies. HTH.

Thank you for this thorough reply. We are going over our winter break in the Northeast so mid February. Not sure if Florida has off then. Hotel prices seem way higher than our early August trip. I will look into all of these. Thank you!

 

[JHarr]

If you are not planning to travel during the summer, spring break, or during a holiday period, then you may want to consider a resort like Club Wyndham Bonnet Creek (Vacation Club). There's less restriction on rental dates at other resorts. The better timeshare resorts tend to offer nice, heated pools, a pool bar, and fun activities (like a movie night). Rare to find a decent shuttle to the parks and you would not get daily housekeeping, instead having a full condo with space, privacy, kitchen amenities, an en suite MBR, possibly additional BRs. Rental rates are usually less than 300/night, sometimes much less depending on the time of year.

If you want a regular full-service hotel with shuttles to the Disney parks (or at least to TTC), I'd look first at these Disney Springs area hotels which participate in Disney's Early Theme Park Entry. They're located on Hotel Plaza Blvd, which ends up at Disney Springs, less than a mile to the furthest hotel. Rooms commonly range from $130-$300/night, again depending on the time of year. Reviews for B Resort are not good but the others seem pretty good. I'm not sure which of these (if any) have a movie night. Check for any added resort fees before booking.

Hotel Plaza Blvd hotels, in order of proximity to Disney Springs Marketplace:

• Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace - Disney Springs
• Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Resort - Disney Springs
• Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• Holiday Inn Orlando - Disney Springs
• B Resort & Spa Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs
• DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando - Disney Springs
• Drury Plaza Hotel Orlando Lake Buena Vista - Disney Springs - opening Nov. 2022 or later

If you will not be traveling during prime time (like Christmas week or Easter week), also consider Marriott Orlando World Center or Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort Bonnet Creek. They are full-service deluxe hotels with beautiful lobbies and pool areas. Because they also have timeshare condos on the shared properties, they are more likely to offer access to additional family-friendly amenities and activities. The Christmas & Easter holidays are more expensive, of course.

Lastly, look into renting DVC points to stay at a Disney villa. The main negative is non-refundable deposit or difficult cancellation policies. HTH.

Thanks for the great reply. Very helpful as I have been struggling on deciding on where to stay. Spoiled for choice is sometimes not a good thing. Very helpful to receive input from someone with experience. Thank you

 

[monica9]

I was going to suggest the Gaylord Resort but getting hard to find a reasonable rate but this location is always amazing.

Ok will look into it!