Marriotts Cypress Harbour Questions

[zackchan]

Does anyone know how far CH is from WDW? From the
Unofficial Guide- it looks like it is not in the area that
they are saying is really congested- it looks relatively
"easy" to catch a highway west and then onto to
road that goes to WDW (sorry I don't have the highway
numbers in front of me)- But the guide still says it takes
25 mins?

Also, is it possible to get a refurbished room, close
to a pool AND with a view? If not- which of those
3 criteria are most important at CH? i.e. are you ever
really that "far" from a pool; are the non refurbished
rooms really that "bad"; are there any really "bad"
views? etc. (the view is semi important to us because we
will be with my parents who may not go to the
parks each day so I would like them to have something
pleasant to look while at the room- though my Dad
probably won't care through is napping, closed
eyelids!!)

My understading is that there is no transportation to
WDW- is this correct? I think there is a local bus that
runs along International drive- what is it called and
is it easy to use? any experiences to share?

Thanks for any help or suggestions!!

 

[mulanrouge]

We stayed at MCH in October 2003. We were not "overly" impressed with our room. I am pretty sure we stayed in one of the non-refubished rooms. The wallpaper was starting to peel a little, the couches were worn and starting to tear in a couple of places, but other than that it was clean and would stay there again. The view we had was probably one of the worst in the whole place. I can't remember the building number we had, we stayed in a top floor, and we had a big tree in front of our unit and could barely see the lakes from our balcony. I would say about 95% of the units would have a great view.

The pool areas were very nice. They had two to choose from. My DS (7) at the time and DD (4) had a great time. They have a lot of family activities scheduled throughout the week and have a sheet outlining these when you check in.

I am not sure about the transportation. We rented a car while we were there, and did not find traffic to WDW to be a problem. MCH is close to SEAWORLD if that helps at all. I don't believe it took us 25 minutes to get to WDW, maybe 15 at the most.

You should also be aware that they only have Pizza Hut delivery on site, no restaurant. They also have a 7-11 type store as well. Just selling the basics (although they do have a little deli-type sandwich shop at the back of the store).

Hope that helps.

 

[zackchan]

Thanks for the info!!

We will have a car also- I was just wondering in case someone
"stays behind" in our group one day and they want to go anywhere if
there was any type of transportation in the area- or if they wanted
to meet us at the parks later... I guess there is always taxis in any
case!!

I saw that it is near Seaworld- and that is not in the "congested"
area they refer to in the UG- I hope it is only 15 mins- that sounds
better than 25 mins!!

Do you (or anyone else know) where the closest grocery stores
are? Did you get any groceries while you were there or did you
bring from home or eat a the parks or local resturants?

Do you recall if they had internet access in the rooms?

Thanks again for the help!

 

[mulanrouge]

Keeping in mind it was almost 2 years ago we were there, at that time they did not have internet access in the rooms. They did have a payphone/internet access in the lobby to check e-mails or surf the web (only one, and at times I had to wait my turn).

I believe we went to the Winn Dixie close to DTD for our groceries. There are many local restaurants in the area, however none that I can think of within walking distance.

 

[jdm]

We stayed at Cypress Harbour a couple of years ago. We had a very nice 2 bedroom villa close to the clubhouse pool. This is a beautiful resort. You'll enjoy it.

We stayed across the street at Horizons in March of this year. I'm trying to remember as I am terrible with directions, but there is a grocery store (Publix) and a drug store in a strip mall type center about 5 minutes from the resort. I think you just go right out of the resort, take another right and drive for about 3 minutes and you're there. I'm sure somebody will jump in with more detail! You do not have to go into the Disney area to go to the grocery store if you don't want to.

You are at the more undeveloped area of International Drive but 5 - 10 minutes from any restaurant chain you can think of! Enjoy! Have fun!


Jenn

 

[jdm]

I just wanted to add that I found CH to be one of the most accommodating resorts we have stayed at. I told them what we were looking for as far as views, pools, etc. and they suggested where we should stay. We were very happy with a unit right by the clubhouse pool. That is where most of the happenings (karoke etc.) are. There is the island swim area also, but my kids were not that enthused so we didn't spend any time there. There is a third pool which was a very no-frills area that I suspect the retired / no kids people enjoyed. There is a little boat that you can hop to go across the lake to the activities center etc.....

I don't know anything about the public transportation as we didn't use it.

Hope that helps

Jenn

 

[zackchan]

jdm- Thanks for all the info- activities and pool areas sound great! We will be asking for a refurbished unit- with a view- near a pool (not to much to ask!!) Glad to hear there are resturants and grocery stores nearby- we won't starve!!

jdm- when you stayed at Horizons- do you remember how long it took to get to WDW??

mulanrouge- thanks for the info on the internet access- that is the only
part that I am concerned about! But I am sure it will be fine!!

 

[floridahippy]

We stayed here at the beginning of the year and we all loved the place.
We asked for a unit near the entrance and clubhouse as we were without a car - they gave us a unit in building 60 which is more or less the first unit you come to. I believe the two nearest the clubhouse are mainly reserved for owners.
The Pizza Hut and the little store on site were very useful.
The Lynx buses and the IRide trolley both stop outside the Resort - just a few stops to get to Seaworld and if you cross the road and get one the other way it is very close to the shopping mall where there is an excellent store - think it was Walmarts but wouldnt swear to it.
Internet is in all the units I believe.
The staff were great there to and were really helpful.
Have fun

 

[spiceycat]

the marketplace and pizza hut will be closed starting Sept 1 til Nov (???) - I will look in the letter tonight.

I am sending my cousin's family to MCH the end of Sept.

jdm is correct turn right out of the resort - at the light turn right again - there is a gas station on your right a little further up the road is a shopping center - it has a Walgreens and a Publix. Also the street is HGVC and next door to it is the Premium Outlet Mall! Dolly Parkin's dinner theatre is close too.

very nice place lots to do here.

you can get to WDW by I4 - or ID - if you go by I4 then turn left out of the resort - at the traffic light turn left again

ID - out of your resort turn right, turn right you are not on ID. when this road quits turn right (left will take you to the airport on a toll road). just stay on this road - you will see the signs for DD, Epcot, etc. shortly.

I would say 15 minutes too. Marriott Grand Vista is further away and I could get to Epcot in 10 minutes.

 

[zackchan]

Wow guys- thanks for the great info!!

floridahippy- I will look up IRide and the Lynx busses on the internet-
Was building #60 a good one? Any noise "problems" from the clubhouse??

Spiceycat- we will be there at the end of Sept too- I can hardly
wait!! I am glad to hear it seems to be less time to get there
than the tourguide was leading me to believe- Do you think
I4 or ID (is that International Drive?) would be a better choice?

Thanks to you and jdm for the in depth directions to the grocery
store and Walgreens- Is Publix a regular grocery store (i am
on the West Coast and I am not familiar with Publix)- it is not a
bulk store or speciality store- right?

Thanks again to eveyone for the great info!

 

[floridahippy]

We had two units next to each other on the ground floor and had no noise problems at all!!
The Units were lovely - they had not been refurbished but were not worn out by any means!!!
Our units looked out on the tennis courts - or could have been some other kind of courts!!! Thinking about it it was sand so it wouldnt have been tennis!!
When we were there they were doing a free photo shoot - we booked one and it was really quick but the photos were fantastic!!
I dont know if it was due to it being in January and so quiet anyway!!
Other postings have me confused - I must say i would say turn LEFT out of Cypress Harbour and then first Right at the lights for the mall and shops!!!

 

[spiceycat]

you can go that way.

but the new PUBLIX is the other way.

I love publix - it is a grocery store. It has some better vegs and fruit than other grocery stores for the same price. It has some things cheaper than Winnie Dixie - other things are more. but Publix definite has fresher vegs, fruit and meat than WD.

I like ID - but most of the time I4 will be shorter.

Now in traffic - morning 8:30 to 10 and evening 4 to 6 - definitely go ID. Now it will also be slower because of traffic. Sometime you can see I4 before you get on it. If it is stopped or really slow because of an accident. then definitely go with ID.

Once you are on I4 and the traffic is a problem I would simply get off the first exit should be Downtown Disney and get to the theme parks by the back roads.

 

[dvc_john]

Just to add to what's already been said...

Cypress Harbor and Horizons are on opposite sides of the street. To get to the Publix mentioned, turn right out of Horizons, but left out of Cypress Harbor. This Publix is pretty new, and is my preference for a nearby grocery store. Publix is probably THE major grocery store chain in Florida.

There is a public Lynx bus that runs in front of the resort, but I've never taken it and am not sure of the route.

I stayed at CH about 18 months ago, and Horizons about 3 months ago. At CH, they were rufurbishing units, but that was so long ago I'm not sure if they are still doing that, or if they are finished. I was given a choice of a 1st floor refurbished unit, or a top floor non-refurbished unit. I chose the non-refurbished unit, and it wasn't all that bad. Some wear and tear, but not as bad as a non-refurbished unit I had about the same time at Grande Vista.

When I stay offsite, I almost always chose one of these 3 Marriotts, or one of the two Hilton Grand Vacation properties.

 

[jdm]

Back again.... just wanted to say that when I stayed at Horizons, I definitely took a left out of the resort. Because CH is across the street, I said right- pertaining to CH. But, sounds like, either way you go- you'll find a grocery store! I like Publix. We go every year and we always try to find one to stock our condo. Stay away from Goodings (I think that's it)- very expensive, I thought.

Have a great time. I'm jealous! Wish we were going back again this year. We took a Disney cruise in March so didn't stay our usual 10 days in Orlando. Just added on 5 so just didn't feel like I got my real fix!

Oh, and Disney wasn't more than 15 minutes....

Jenn