lake buena vista area

[torticat]

hi there

I am thinking of staying at a hotel in the lake buena vista area and just wanted to know if its ok/easy to walk aorund the area, mainly is there footpaths and traffic crossing points? Or are you risking your life trying to cross roads? thanks.

 

[Goofyish]

It really depends on your hotel location which hotel are you in?

You have to remember in the US the car is king - I've seen Americans get in their car to cross over the road from the hotel to a restaurant LOL

There are usually sidewalks where the hotels, shops and restaurants are located.
Crossing the roads can be a bit dodgy and you need to take care - even if there is a crossing point. Especially if you are near a junction because cars can turn right on a red light! Also remember to look the right way LOL

 

[torticat]

hi there

I am looking at the sheraton safari hotel. Seems to be in a good location and was hoping that getting around would be easy. Trying to make sure its a suitable area for a non drive holiday.

 

[Goofyish]

The Sheraton Safari is right in the middle of the LBV / Crossroads area.
So there are loads of restaurants and shops within walking distance. There is a Sizzler and Pizza Hut right next to the hotel and a Goodings store just down the road.

It looks like you get a free shuttle to the Disney parks and also a free shuttle to the Premium Outlets Mall. From there you can get the I-Ride trolley to Seaworld and I-Drive

You could even walk to Downtown Disney if you had the urge (about a mile down the road)

http://www.sheratonsafari.com/index.cfm

 

[wifey]

You will be able to get about just fine on foot we alway walk around when we stay in the LBV area we usually pick the Comfort Inn hotel but the Sheraton Safari is very central and close to a couple of chinese restaurants an Olive Garden, Dominos, Walgreens,BK, McD's there's also Dennys and a couple of steakhouses close by the Crossroads has a hair salon, a photography shop and TGI Fridays as well as more restaurants and it's only down the SR535 from the hotel. Just up from the Sheraton Safari there is a lovely place I think it was called the Steak'n'Shake very popular with everyone and they have great opening hours which is fab if you fancy something after touring the parks. I think there's also a Papa John's Pizzaria close by There are lots of pedestrian crossing points and Zebra crossings too so don't worry.

 

[disneyfantotheend]

I have heard stories of people missing their offsite hotel shuttle and being stranded. I think some hotels run them regularly others very few and far between. So that is something I would check into. The good news is if you are within walking distance of DTD, and you miss your shuttle, you could take a bus to DTD and walk from there or vice versa.

 

[wayneg]

We love the LBV area, prefer here to onsite, IDrive or 192.
Look at trip advisor for reviews on safari link below, its a bit mixed. Comfort Inn was bad for us but read this link I posted in, it also gives you a link on there to my review.
We prefer the Courtyard by Marriott again see link below. I have posted in this thread the kind of rates we pay there

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=18628633&posted=1#post18628633

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...ws-Sheraton_Safari_Hotel-Orlando_Florida.html

 

[Astrid]

As others have said the Sheraton Safari is well placed for places to walk to.

I stayed at the Comfort Inn twice and loved it both times. It is basic but had everything we needed and, I seem to recall, the shuttle buses to the Parks were frequent.

We didn't walk to anywhere as we had a car, however, I understand that there was a short cut route which could take you quite easily and safely to Crossroads.

We love the Buena Vista area.

 

[Pootle]

We love the LBV area, prefer here to onsite, IDrive or 192.
Look at trip advisor for reviews on safari link below, its a bit mixed. Comfort Inn was bad for us but read this link I posted in, it also gives you a link on there to my review.
We prefer the Courtyard by Marriott again see link below. I have posted in this thread the kind of rates we pay there

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=18628633&posted=1#post18628633

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...ws-Sheraton_Safari_Hotel-Orlando_Florida.html

I agree with wayneg on this one. Courtyard by Marriott on Palm Parkway, LBV is a very nice place if you can get a good rate. If I'm staying off-site, it's my first choice.

 

[torticat]

thank you all for your replies has really helped me and this does seem to be a great area for a holiday.
now to see if i can get the dates i want to travel and use my tesco clubcard deals!

 

[wicket2005]

I don't think you would have any problems walking around the area. There is also a Pirate Crazy Golf which is always good fun to spend a hour or so.

I have not stayed in the Safari though have passed it, it is situated right on a crossroads junction. I have stayed in the Comfort Inn and whilst we had no problems with the room/staff/hotel, etc, the thing we had the most problem with was the noise from the I4 which is situated only a short distance away. It was that bad I had to resort to having a large glass of wine every night when I got back to make me more sleepy. When I came home my ears just noticed how quiet it was, after the noise of theme parks, then constant noise throughout the night.

There is an excellent site/program called virtual earth which you can download to your computer. You should be able to find your hotel and view it as an aerial photo, it will give you an idea of its location and surroundings. For a bit of fun you can also zoom in on the theme parks too which is excellent.

 

[edinburghlass]

We stayed last year, and are going again next month, in the Country Inns and Suites which is right next door to the Sheraton Safari.

We used the shuttle buses in the morning and evenings but also would take a taxi to DTD and then jump on the first bus that arrived for a resort and then take a bus from there to the park we wanted to go to. We enjoyed seeing some resorts we hadn't visited before and also enjoyed using the various modes of transport from some of the resorts to the parks.

We did walk a bit round the area and I would agree to be careful crossing the roads as it can be pretty scary

 

[tink too]

We stayed in the Sheraton Safari last October - we are non-drivers, too (in the USA anyway ). Their buses ran regularly and we used them almost every day. We sometimes took taxis depending on where we were going and found them reasonably priced.

Plenty shops/restaurants nearby - all within easy walking distance. There was also a Walgreens within walking distance.

Yes - you can walk to DTD. It's not too far but wouldn't recommend it in really hot weather.

We loved the Sheraton Safari and would definately stay there again in the future.

 

[Alibaba]

Hiya
Another thumbs up for Courtyard by Marriott, on Palm Parkway, we stayed there in january and found it to be a great hotel, with plenty of places to eat within walking distance, also the walk to DTD was only 20mins and was a very pleasant walk there is also a Walgreens and supermarket near by.
Let us know where you end up booking,
Ali

 

[irongirlof12]

we have stayed at comfort in and Grosvenor without a car. you can walk to crossroads area and down town disney. you do need to be really careful when crossing the roads. US drivers do not expect to see folks trying to cross a 5/6 lane highway - so take care

 

[wifey]

Quite a few hotels in the LBV area share the shuttle buses but only start at one particular hotel, when we stayed there in '05 at the Comfort Inn the bus always began the Disney route at the Comfort Inn and the worked down PalmParkway picking up at the Courtyard by Marriott,Sheraton Safari, Riu and the DoubleTree across the junction at the SR535 and on to Disney's TTC.
There was a separate bus which went to Universal and Seaworld and the schedule was available at the reception in the hotel lobby. Return locations from each park were given by the bus driver and the times of return were on the schedule too.
Please remember that bus drivers sometimes need to accomodate disabled passengers with wheelchairs (they should ring a number on the schedule the day before) this can take up a couple of rows of seats and they will board these guests and their travel party first which may result in an extra bus being requested by the driver to dispatch, there may be a delay of 20 mins to half an hour for any guests who need to wait for the second bus usually the full bus will not leave until the second one is within 10 mins away from the hotel.
We did see disabled guests who did not arrange their pick-up with the transport company who were told they would not be able to board that morning because they had not phoned . They had to make alternative arrangements for a wheelchair accessible taxi and we did see them later in the park and they had no more transport problems.