OMG! I am really scared! I just read reviews on Travelocity for Sheraton Safari

[princessmomma]

I booked this hotel on Priceline and the majority of the reviews on Bidding for Travel were more than positive. Now that my trip is only a few days away, I am reading more reviews on this hotel (on Travelocity) which are horrific, my heart is racing a million miles an hour. I really don't want to stay in a dump.

Is there someone out there that can put my heart at ease?

 

[CarolA]

I have not stayed there, but I have read Travelocity reviews in the past and my advice is to take them with a grain of salt. I am not sure what it is about that site, but they seem to have the world's most negative reviewers. I have read some reviews on hotels that I have stayed in that were very nice that make it sound like the poor reviewer was at the Motel 6.

I tried to post a review there and found it very hard which may mean only really disgruntled people even try.

I have found the reviews on biddingfortravel to be fairly reliable. They generally don't expect a two or three star hotel to be a Ritz Carlton in terms of service and quality and do a good job describing what you get.

 

[jersey shark]

The reviews are probably correct...it's not a great hotel...doesn't look great from the outside (I've never stayed) But, then again, everyone has different standards.

As a general rule of thumb, it's pretty easy to find very nice hotel accomodations in Orlando. My preferences are for a full suite since we (family of 4) need the space, newly built or renovated, and if they offer complimentary breakfast, great....I tend to gravitate to Residence Inns by Marriott or Embassy Suites or in Orlando, the Marriott villas (there's many!).

I hope it works out for you.

 

[BarryHom]

I stayed at the Sheraton Safari and it was a nice and clean place. If that's a dump, then they've never stayed at hotels I've been at!

 

[SimonV]

The Sheraton is fine, don't worry. It's a good quality, mid-range hotel in an ideal location, with decent food and beverage services and a great pool (especially for kids). I also don't pay much heed to those Travelocity write-ups as they seldom tally with my experiences.

 

[SCgoofy64]

The Sheraton Safari is the best 3* hotel we have received thru priceline. It is nicer than Best Western in Downtown Disney, Renissance, Hyatt, and double tree. The rooms are nice and large with a balcony. The pool area is great needs a little paint here and there but otherwise nice. Just to compare we considered it a "poor mans" animal kingdom lodge. It has a nice safari them just not Disney. The lobby is great with a tank full of baby alligators. Don't worry I'm sure you will like this hotel.

 

[susie2]

hi, we stayed at the safari for three weeks in oct 03, and it was a lovely hotel, we had no complaints at all, when we first arrived our tap was loose and we rang reception to ask them if it could be fixed, the man arrived within 10 mins, when we arrived back from the parks they had left us a voucher for us all to have a free breakfast, we were very pleased with the service and the staff, my to boys fell in love with the waitresses, we would not hesitate to stay at this hotel again, please feel free to ask if you have any questions. susie

 

[KLAIT]

We just got back from the Sheraton Safari. We also won this on a Priceline bid.

Don't worry, the place is not horrific and I think we got the worst room that there was in the place (room 2630). Right by the service elevator and across from the ice machine.

The place is very clean and is in a great location...the pool is wonderful as it has a slide and hottub. The grounds are beautiful too.

We did laundry and it was a clean laundry room...the restaurant and bar was nice.....

I would compare the room itself to a Holiday Inn type place....nothing really fancy, but roomy and clean.

I was also in a panic when I won a Priceline bid for a night in Jacksonville and read a the same site for reviews...I even tried to bid for another hotel for the same night,...then decided that I would look at it before I decided...it was great!

 

[princessmomma]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! Your responses are very much appreciated.

I really started to panic because I bid for 2 rooms, one for my family and one for my sister's family.

Over the past 2 years, I have bid on about 6 rooms through Priceline and all of them have been accurately rated and everything went very smoothly with our trips. We were never given a sub-standard room because we were Priceline customers.

How are the restaurants and room service there? Do children eat free? Could someone recommend some good family restaurants nearby?

Thanks again.

 

[KLAIT]

We ordered room service one time and it was reasonable and pretty good. We did not eat at one of the restaurants, but picked it up to be brought to our room and it was good.

The restaurants that I noticed nearby were IHOP, Dennys, Perkins, Jungle Jims (which was fun for our little guy)and more, but I just cannot remember. There are a lot there!

I am not sure that we received a bad roomlocation because we were Priceline as they were really busy. I called a few days in advance to request 2 beds and the girl said no problem and asked if I wanted the 3rd or 4th floor.....I gave her my preference, but when we checked in the girl was not really friendly and gave us this room. I asked her about the 3rd or 4th floor and she told me there were none available.

I would call and make requests before you leave.

 

[GoldenOldie]

There is a page of info on Sheraton Safari at http://www.wvnh.net/sheraton/sheratonsafari.htm that includes photos, TV channels, room service menus, nearby food places, and park bus transportation schedules among other things.

 

[da disney fans]

I stayed at the Sheraton Safari once, in October 2000, and I found it to be rather nice. I loved the ambiance, and the staff was kind and very helpful. It was clean, the rooms are a nice size and the transportation to and from WDW was reliable.

My favorite website for hotel reviews is www.tripadvisor.com. I've found it to be extremely helpful.

 

[Crissy7682]

I stayed there my second trip to Orlando (2000 maybe) and had no problems. I went with my FI and his parents paid and actually his mom really liked it and stayed there a second time when she went with her nephews. I wasn't impressed by the rooms, but loved the pool and buffet.

 

[tinaluis]

We stayed there October, 2003 on a Priceline bid and loved it. They were doing some touch-up painting near the pool area and re-wallpapering some of the hallways but they were very professional about their work and didn't get in the way of general hotel traffic too much. In fact, I was happy for a little bit of chaos so my crazy kids didn't stand out like some thumbs! This hotel is definitely a solid 3* family-oriented place, the rooms were a little larger than average (accomodating a crib on the side instead of between the beds where we usually have to put it), the staff was very polite and helpful and the pool was awesome. Don't fret too much. I had the same thing happen with a room we got through Priceline near Georgia for the drive down. I read a negative tidbit of information that had me so sick I nearly tried to make a conventional reservation (GASP!) but my DH said we should get there before getting all worked up over it. It turned out to be a very nice place and I sighed over all the time I spent worrying for nothing.

 

[arminnie]

I also stayed there in October 2003 on a Priceline bid and was delighted with the room. the staff is great. They are also in the process of installing the Heavenly Beds that people rave about so much. I didn't have one, but there was nothing wrong with the existing bed.

I didn't use the pool but I did eat downstairs and found it to be very reasonable with good service.

 

[Snoopymom]

Whew! I have reservations and I was worried too.

How far is it in real time to the parks?

Thanks!!!

 

[arminnie]

I'd say that it was about 6-7 minutes to Downtown Disney Market Place - you can judge the park distances from there.

 

[Snoopymom]

Perfect! Thanks!

 

[princessmomma]

Well, I just got back from the Sheraton! We spent three nights there. It is a solid 3*. The rooms were a good size and we actually received a room that had new mattresses installed that day! It was great having a new bed to sleep on. They are actually queen size beds. The unfortunate part is that they did not have correct size bedding, they were still using old double flat sheets. That was a nuisance. Old pillows were terrible, bring your own from home.

One more thing, the beds are not Heavenly Beds, these are Serta Sweet Sleepers, which are much firmer than the Heavenly Beds at the Swan. Actually too firm for my liking.

So to sum up, the common areas were very clean and the rooms are decent. Should be quite nice when they get the new sheets and down comforters on the new beds!

It was a good deal at $37 Priceline bid, but would not pay $95 a night when I could get the Swan/Dolphin for $129 teacher rate.

 

[Snoopymom]

Thanks for the update! I really appreciate it and will do the same when we return.