Is Nick Hotel worth the money

[gcarbone]

Looking into staying here in early November or early December. Cheapest price i saw was $180/nt. The amenities look really good ...pools/waterslides, kids eat free, etc. but I know the rooms aren't great and the food isn't great. There will be 2 adults, three kids so we need a suite. Other resorts seem cheaper but is it worth losing the amenities. If anyone has does Nick, is it worth it?? Or any suggestions on another resort (with exciting pool, free breakfast, etc.) for less than $180? Thanks

 

[Pixie]

Is this the same place? If so there is another thread about it here.
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=818702

(if not, sorry, just trying to help)

 

[ljsmom]

We just got back from a one night stay. The place was nice, but I really didn't think it was worth the $ (we paid $160). My kids loved it, but we stayed one night after having spent a week at Horizons by Marriott in a two bedroom unit. The units at Nick Suites are VERY small, compared to the spaciousness of the Marriott. Compared to a regular hotel room it is better, although not much. I would stay for a night (but would never pay more than $160) just so the kids could experience it. The pools and slides are great - but crowded. The poolside games were fun too. If it was me, I would try to get a timeshare type place on hotelkingdom. You can get two bedrooms, full kitchen, etc. for less than $180. Some of them have really nice pools for the kids too.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[kath1210]

I used to be the biggest fan of this hotel when it was Holiday Inn Family Suites. We absolutely LOVED it!! In my opinion, the conversion to Nick Hotel ruined it. The rooms are still nice, and the pools are great, but there is no longer any free hot breakfast (which was a BIG selling point for us and many others), free popcorn, free face painting or free balloon animals. The atmosphere is not the same - too bright and loud - none of the old people are there. The food is not the same either.

We are going to Disney in December and have booked two connecting rooms at Pop Century. The AAA rate is $69 per night, including tax. The rate for Nick is $213 per night. Pop is the better deal in my opinion, with two rooms, 3-4 beds (depending on whether we get our requested king room), 2 bathrooms, and 2 TVs (Nick Suites has 3 TVs). We can get a fridge for an extra $10 per night.

If your kids are crazy about Nick characters, you can still go to the character breakfast at Nick, but it is not anywhere near the quality of Disney character breakfasts.

That's just my opinion. Maybe I would not be so disappointed if I had not been spoiled by the "old" family suites hotel.

 

[tnkrbell]

Now I am freaking out!! Myabe I should cancel my ressies!!! I was suppose to spend 2 nights at nick and 3 nights at Disney. Should I cancel?? It looked really neat and I thought my Daughter and friend would love it but now Im concerend we are spending over 200.00 per night (the cheapest I could find) please help me decide!!!

 

[SpideyHulk24]

tnkerbell-

It depends what you are looking for. My family just stayed at this resort and loved it. The official opening is 05/30, but the construction is almost done. If your kids love Nick, then they will be in heaven. My son lovessssssssssssssss

Spongebob and he adored it. It is pricey, but the renovations look good and the suite worked great for us. Now granted you could stay on site at disney for the same price or less, but it is a room and not a suite. However at Disney you get extra perks like EMH, and this hotel does not include those perks. The pools are a dream. Truly like a water park.

Hope that helps!

 

[cmcsharon]

We just got back last night from 2 nights at the Nick Hotel (after 4 nights at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort and then 4 nights on the Disney cruise) so mine is a very recent assessment of the hotel!

Having just come off the cruise...2 adults and 2 children (9 and 11) in a stateroom for 4 days...walking into the Nick suite was wonderful! It was HUGE for us!

We loved the hotel! We loved our room, it was the Fairly Oddparents theme with the 2 twin beds, 4th floor overlooking the Oasis pool! We loved the pools! Used both the Oasis and the Lagoon pool. Yes, they can get crowded...we found the Oasis pool to not nearly be as crowded...this is the one where the slides empty into the pool! The Lagoon has the zero entry area so there are more little ones at that pool. Even with the pools crowded there is plenty of lounge chairs for all...we never had a problem finding them no matter what time we went. (It is loud though, with music and games going...if your family needs afternoon naps...I wouldn't suggest staying where we were.)

I was VERY IMPRESSED with the Lifeguard situation at the pools. I noticed several times how they would count the number of people in the pools and bring in additional lifeguards as needed. I also overheard the radio traffic one night as they were looking for a lost child and they were very professional checking all the water areas (pools, slide areas, spas, etc.).

The hotel is VERY convenient to Disney World and provides transportation to the parks if you need it.

We had more than our share of problems with our room (toilet not working when we got there, phones not working for nearly all of our stay, and the air conditioner quit working on the last night) but, I'd probably stay there again. They're experiencing a few problems as they make the transition to the Nickelodeon change...there is still minor construction going on but it's nothing intrusive. As I was checking us out I mentioned about the air conditioning not working (couldn't call because the phone didn't work) and suggested they not issue the room to another guest since the phone still hadn't been fixed (not complaining at all, just politely bringing it to their attention) and they gratiously credited us back a portion of the room rates because of the inconvience! We ended up paying a total of $217 for the 2 nights, tax included!

We did do the character breakfast...if you are used to the Disney quality of character breakfasts, as we are, you'll want to skip this. It doesn't come close to what it could be. I'd also skip the regular breakfast buffet, again not up to quality.

If you want a place with a little bit more space for your family, in a fun, loud, family friendly place with great water activities for all ages...this is the place to be!

As they say there...You'll have the slime of your life!

 

[tnkrbell]

My DD is 9 almost 10 will she still like it or are the waterparks geared toward littler kids?? Im just wondering if I should cancel and just stay the whole time at the Yacht club?? The pool there is nice also. I just thought the nick hotel looked neat with the nightime activities did you do those??

 

[cocowum]

We were there in the beginning of May and DD10 LOVED it. Plenty of activities for a 10yo. We stayed at AKL and HRH and DD chose NICK FS as her fav!!!

 

[DisneyMomx7]

We haven't been there yet - our res isn't until June 29 and 30, checking out July 1. However, from everything I've been reading it seems to me that it all depends on your expectations. We stay at the Grand Floridian at DIsney and the HRH at Universal. We are not expecting the Nick Hotel to be in that category. We booked it because it looked like something the kids would really enjoy, lots of fun, and something new. Staying there also means we won't have to visit a water park, which although the Disney ones are great, I don't enjoy because two dds can swim well and ds is too little so DH and I have to stay apart almost the whole time we are there. If I want good food we'll just take a taxi over to DTD or somewhere, we're going for the atmosphere. It seems like they really cater to kids - with all the Nick activities. Also Universal closed down their Nick studios so without the Nick Hotel my kids would have been disappointed. Hopefully we won't be disappointed but I think we're going with minimal expectations and just want the kids to have fun!

 

[tnkrbell]

Im glad to hear the good reviews!! Im thinking that my DD is older and bringing two friends that this will be a good time. (I can just sit and relax!!! )
Any other reviews would be great!!!

 

[3for Me]

I have to toally agree with DisneyMomx7. We are staying here for two nights after going to the Portofino Bay. We booked for the same reasons - thought the kids would love it but not expecting what we'll be getting at Portofino.

I have several friends that are doing the same thing - just going for a night or two to give the kids the experience. None of us are expecting quality food or a quiet Grand Floridian type stay - we are going for the loud, fun craziness that I feel this hotel has to offer. Again - doing it for the kids.

By the way, a previous poster stated that you could just do the character breakfast if you wanted rather than staying there. I understand this is not the case. They told us when we booked that you must be a guest staying at the hotel to attend the breakfast with Spongebob - so don't count on that unless you call first.

If you are concerned, why not split your stay and just try the Nick Hotel for one or two nights. I am not sure you would get your money's worth as much in December because it may be too cold to enjoy most of the water facilities to any great length.

At any rate, good luck with your decision and have a great vacation.

I'll post a review when we return after the first week in June.

 

[tnkrbell]

Im looking forward to your review!~! We go the second weekend in July!!

 

[DisneyMomx7]

Looking forward to the reviews. We'll be there June 29th and June 30th. Moving on to the GF on July 1. I've already warned DH to wear his sunglasses - this hotel is really bright!